Construction of China virus hospitals gathers pace

Chinese workers have begun building a second new hospital in Wuhan to help deal with a deadly virus that originated in the city, state television reported Monday.

Construction of the Wuhan Leishenshan hospital started late on Saturday and is due to be completed in little more than a week, CCTV said.

CCTV footage showed hundreds of excavators levelling ground at the construction site.

It said the hospital will provide 1,500 beds for patients showing symptoms of the coronavirus that's sweeping China and is feared to have reached a number of other countries across the world.

Meanwhile, construction workers are working round the clock to build another new hospital in the city, Wuhan Huoshenshan hospital.

That's due to be ready this coming weekend.

CCTV said the levelling work for Huoshenshan hospital is complete and workers are putting separation layers on the ground.

Experts say China is able to build hospitals at such high speed by using pre-fabricated buildings, and through its ability to marshall huge quantities of construction workers and equipment at immediate notice.