No bat soup, people collapsing in Wuhan, China —Filipina resident

A Filipina who has been living in Wuhan, China for four years said there is no truth to photos and videos circulating online showing Chinese people eating bat soup or randomly collapsing in public.

Interviewed on State of the Nation with Jessica Soho on Monday, Nellan Banda warned Filipinos against “fake” photos and videos that have become viral amid the 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) scare that originated in Wuhan.

“Ang social media is maraming mga fake na video na ginagawa para mas lalong pumanic ‘yung mga tao,” she said.

Banda said she had never seen people randomly collapsing in public, contrary to a number of videos that have surfaced online.

“At saka yung mga tao dito sa Wuhan, hindi po kumakain ng paniki. ‘Yung mga paniki na nakikita niyo na soup, my goodness, ilang taon na po ako dito sa China, hindi po ako nakakakita ng ganyan na soup,” she added.

Banda assured Filipinos with relatives in China that the Chinese government is doing all it can to contain the virus.

She added that life in Wuhan is still “normal” despite the lockdown of the city following the outbreak.

However, Wuhan residents now prefer to stay inside their homes and only leave to purchase food and other necessities.

Classes in the city have also been suspended until further notice from authorities.

The outbreak began on December 31, 2019.

The death toll has risen to 80 in a matter of weeks. —Julia Mari Ornedo/LDF, GMA News