Celebrations Held at Wuhan’s Makeshift Hospitals After City Closes Them Down

Olivia Li
Updated:

Since Feb. 5, local authorities in Wuhan, the epicenter of the coronavirus epidemic in China, turned 14 stadiums, school gyms, and convention centers into makeshift hospitals, to house patients with mild symptoms of coronavirus, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus.

Chinese Communist Party (CCP) branch organizations were quickly set up at these hospitals. Some patients, led by medical staff, were sworn into the CCP under the Party’s red flag. They then sang communist songs together.

On March 10, the same day Chinese leader Xi Jinping visited Wuhan for the first time since the outbreak began, the city’s authorities closed down all makeshift hospitals, saying that there were now fewer patients and such facilities were no longer needed.

However, residents told The Epoch Times that many are in fact still sick.

Staff held a ceremony outside one makeshift hospital, celebrating its closure.

In this video, a large group is seen rehearsing ahead of the ceremony, instructed by a director. - Director: Okay. Very good! Now we add one action. The banners—we left the banners out.

Director: Right now, it’s a rehearsal. Everyone must do everything perfectly during the real performance. Okay, based on the idea I proposed, let’s do a final rehearsal, all right? The last one. Okay, I hereby pronounce, Wuhan’s makeshift hospitals are formally closed. Fight on, Wuhan!

The crowd: Fight on, Wuhan! Fight on, Hubei! Fight on, China! Wuhan, bound to win! Hubei, bound to win! China, bound to win!

Director: Perfect! We will do it the exact same way as the rehearsal we went through this afternoon. Good, very good. You guys are great!