China comes to a standstill in memory of coronavirus victims and 'martyrs'

At 10 am (0200 GMT), citizens paused, cars, trains and ships sounded their horns, and air-raid sirens rang out in memory of the more than 3,000 lives claimed by the virus in China.

In Wuhan -- the city where the virus first emerged late last year -- sirens and horns sounded as people fell silent in the streets.

Tongji Hospital staff stood outside with heads bowed towards the main building, some in the protective hazmat suits that have become a symbol of the crisis worldwide.

"I feel a lot of sorrow about our colleagues and patients who died," Xu, a nurse at Tongji who worked on the frontlines treating coronavirus patients, told AFP, holding back tears.

"I hope they can rest well in heaven."

Workers in protective wear paused silently beside barriers at one residential community -- a reminder there are still tight restrictions on everyday life across Wuhan.

Pedestrians in a busy shopping district stopped and kept their heads low in silent tribute, while police stood with their riot shields down and bowed heads.

State media showed Chinese President Xi Jinping and other officials standing outside a Beijing government compound, wearing white flowers.

National flags were lowered to half-mast across the country, including in the capital's Tiananmen Square.

Park-goers paused their activities too, some with hands together in prayer.

Officials said the observance was a chance to mourn virus "martyrs" -- an honorific title the government bestowed this week on 14 medical workers who died fighting the outbreak.

The martyrs include doctor Li Wenliang, a Wuhan whistleblower reprimanded by authorities for trying to warn others in the early days of the contagion.

Saturday's commemoration coincided with the annual Qing Ming holiday -- the "tomb sweeping" festival -- when Chinese people visit the graves of relatives and leave offerings in remembrance.

Some restrictions were tightened again this week to prevent a second wave of infections, with authorities discouraging cemetery visits to mark the festival.

At Beijing's enormous Babaoshan cemetery, mourners made online reservations to visit graves in a limited number of time slots, with only three relatives allowed per tomb.

Nobody was coming or leaving Wuhan's Biandanshan Cemetery Saturday afternoon, and security staff stood at the gate.

Wuhan resident Wang Yanhong, barred from visiting the graves of her grandfather and brother this year, dropped a bouquet of flowers into the river instead.