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Pride, Caution Evident in Wuhan on Lockdown Anniversary

Agence France-Presse

   WUHAN, CHINA - One year after it thrust the word "lockdown" into the
   global conversation, Wuhan reached the anniversary with a mix of pride
   at emerging from COVID-19's grip and caution over a possible relapse.

   A year ago Saturday, Wuhan shocked the world by confining its 11
   million anxious citizens to their homes, beginning a traumatic 76-day
   lockdown that underscored the growing threat of a mysterious pathogen
   emanating from the city.

   At 10 a.m. that day, public transport was shut down, and exiting the
   city was banned without special permission. An eerie silence descended.

   One by one, adjacent areas in hard-hit Hubei province quickly followed
   suit, as did governments worldwide as the coronavirus went global.

   But while the world's pandemic struggles continue, Wuhan today is
   nothing like the locked-down ghost town of a year ago, with traffic
   humming, sidewalks bustling, and citizens packing public transport and
   parks.

   "I was frightened last year, but things have improved a lot since the
   epidemic has been brought under control," said a maskless jogger in his
   20s who gave only his surname, Wang, one of many people exercising
   under hazy skies along Wuhan's Yangtze Riverfront on Saturday.

   'Life is like before now'

   But memories of Wuhan's ordeal remain fresh, especially as localized
   COVID-19 clusters multiply across China, prompting mass testing in
   Beijing and targeted lockdowns in other areas.

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