Two Fijian students quarantined at a New Zealand military base are happy they are out of Wuhan - the Chinese city at the centre of the coronavirus outbreak.
Fijian students Joe Racaca, right, and Sylvia Nandani aboard the chartered Air New Zealand flight from Wuhan. Photo: Supplied by Joe Racaca
Sylvia Nandani and Joe Racaca were among 193 people evacuated by New Zealand last week.
Ms Nandani had arrived in Wuhan from Beijing two weeks before the outbreak and said the experience had been overwhelming.
"It was really difficult to be locked in your room for a week because they had told us not to go outside," she said.
"And where I was located, the market that the virus started from was maybe a few kilometres away.
Sylvia Nandani outside her caravan at Whangaparaoa. Photo: Supplied by Sylvia Nandani
"There were a few major shops and supermarkets that were open but they used to be very crowded, and going out to the supermarket was highly risky.
"But I'm glad to be out of Wuhan."
Ms Nandani was studying for a Masters degree in Food Science at the Oil Crops Research Institute of Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences.
Mr Racaca had been in Wuhan for three years studying for a Masters in Cartography and Geographic Information Engineering at the China University of Geoscience.
'Fear of going outside'
The father of four, 33, said being stuck in a room staring at the four walls was like a prison.
"The fear of going outside and the chances of getting infected were high," he said.
"But here in New Zealand, it's been wonderful. I share a caravan with a good friend from Papua New Guinea."
Mr Racaca said before the outbreak, he considered Wuhan his second home and he even contemplated moving his family there: "The place is beautiful, the people are great. I'm just saddened that I had to leave under these circumstances."
Ms Nandani, 25, said she was grateful to the New Zealand government for getting her out.
"Actually it's better than Wuhan. At least here in this quarantine facility, we are allowed to be outside - like we can take fresh air and sunlight...We're able to talk to other people."
Fake news
The pair and 28 other Pacific islanders are quarantined at Whangaparāoa, north of Auckland.
They have called on the Pacific governments to evacuate remaining students from Wuhan.
However, another Fijian student, Varun Kapoor, remains in Wuhan and said he would not leave.
Mr Kapoor believed misinformation about the virus was spreading as fast as the disease.
Varun Kapoor says he is safe in Wuhan. Photo: Supplied by Varun Kapoor
He said an epidemic of fake news was appearing online, including from sources that falsely claimed to be the World Health Organisation and a national health ministry.
"There's a misconception. I think the media has painted Wuhan as zombieland and that is actually not the case," he said.
"This is the spring festival season so businesses do close and people travel home to their families around the country to celebrate the new year."
Mr Kapoor said he chose to stay because Wuhan was not as dangerous as what was "being portrayed in the media".
"I am here and I am more calm, I can tell you, than people back in Fiji, who are reading and watching social media," he said.
"And these people are calling me daily and giving me panic. So it's me who needs to tell them to calm down. In a disaster situation, being rational is your best friend."
Mr Kapoor said life was slowly returning to normal in Wuhan and on campus students were going about their day as per usual.
Locals at a supermarket near the Wuhan University. Photo: Supplied by Varun Kapoor
'Huge risk'
Mr Racaca said he had been able to continue his studies online while in quarantine.
For Mr Kapoor, who is studying civil engineering at Wuhan University, the outbreak had not affected his studies either as he was working on his thesis and did not have any classes to attend.
Members of the International Students Office at Wuhan University of Technology provide vegetables to students who have remained on campus. Photo: Supplied by Varun Kapoor
"For the students who have remained in campus, we keep in contact and manage to do fun stuff," he said.
"We also get daily checks at the university and we are in constant contact with our embassy officials.
"I think we're much safer here than getting on a flight home. You can't be sure about other people on these flights. Where they've been, who they've been with. So, it's a huge risk."
Ms Nandani and Mr Racaca have about a week to go in quarantine.
Meanwhile, the death toll from coronavirus has surpassed 1000 but Chinese health officials have said the outbreak in China may be over by April.
