Hong Kong (AFP)

The Disneyland amusement park in Hong Kong has announced that it will close on Sunday and until further notice due to the epidemic of viral pneumonia in China, a decision made the day after the classification in maximum health alert of the megalopolis.

Its competitor, Ocean Park, also announced the closure of its doors.

On Saturday, chief executive Carrie Lam decreed the maximum level of health alert in the territory and proclaimed drastic measures to stem the spread of the virus.

These announcements come at a time when part of the population is critical of its management of the crisis.

Opposition officials and medical experts have called for, inter alia, to stop or at least limit arrivals from mainland China.

Five cases of the virus that appeared in Wuhan have been identified in the former British colony, including four people who had arrived by train from China at a new station recently opened in the heart of Hong Kong.

This association of hospital administration employees, which has not yet been officially registered as a union, claims to have received 3,700 membership applications.

The megalopolis hospitals have approximately 76,000 employees.

Ms. Lam opposed closing the border, saying that for the time being, such drastic action is not necessary.

However, it announced that all flights and trains from Wuhan were canceled until further notice.

The chief executive said that there were no restrictions on connections to other cities in mainland China, but said that any traveler arriving from mainland China should answer a medical questionnaire.

Schools and universities, currently closed due to the Chinese New Year holidays, will remain closed until February 17.

A series of events have also been canceled, such as the marathon which was to be run on February 9.

Macau, a neighbor of Hong Kong, reported three new cases of coronavirus on Sunday, bringing the total number of infected people in the semi-autonomous region of China to five.

These new cases are three women from Wuhan. One of them arrived in Macao in transit through Hong Kong, authorities said.

The closure of the two amusement parks is a new blow for the Hong Kong economy already hard hit by the political crisis which has shaken the semi-autonomous territory since June and the consequences of the Sino-American trade war.

In 2003, nearly 300 people died in Hong Kong from a family virus that had already severely affected its economy.

© 2020 AFP