The US government is arranging a flight on January 26 to bring diplomats and citizens out of Wuhan.

The Wall Street Journal today cites a source who said Washington had prepared an airplane of about 230 seats to transport US citizens and diplomats and their families in Wuhan, China, where the pneumonia outbreak was due to Corona virus (nCoV), returned to the country.

The source added that Washington has received approval from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other Chinese government agencies after conducting negotiations in recent days.

A spokeswoman for the US Embassy in Beijing on January 23 said the State Department had offered to evacuate the staff at the consulate in Wuhan with their families. However, he declined to comment on information other US citizens were also removed from the city.

The South China Morning Post today quoted an email from the French consulate saying it was also planning to evacuate the trapped citizens in Wuhan.

Epidemic pneumonia caused by nCoV first appeared in Wuhan City, capital of Hubei Province. Symptoms include fever, shortness of breath, and cough. There is currently no vaccine for the virus that can be spread from person to person.

Up to now, 41 people have been killed and 1,300 people infected throughout China. Wuhan pneumonia also occurs in Thailand, Japan, Korea, the United States, Singapore, Nepal, France and Vietnam.