Twenty-four provinces and municipalities including Beijing and Shanghai have called on their residents to stay where they work for Spring Festival to reduce the possibility of being infected with the novel coronavirus. Given the latest outbreak of infections in North China's Hebei province, such a call is necessary for the country to keep the transmission chain of the virus within as limited an area as possible.

Hebei reported 82 new cases of infections on Sunday alone and 49 new asymptomatic cases, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 283 and that of asymptomatic cases to 213. And as yet there is still no sign of a turn for the better.

The sporadic outbreaks of cases in recent months suggest that the cold temperatures in most parts of the country allow the virus to stay alive much longer than usual not only on frozen aquatic products but also on the surface of other things. The wrappings of auto parts having tested positive for the virus in some places is a case in point.

This has made it more difficult to prevent the virus from being transmitted to people from different sources.

Spring Festival, which falls on Feb 12 this year, is the most important holiday for the Chinese people to have a family reunion. There will be millions of trips made in the weeks around the festival using various modes of transport. The travel and gatherings therefore pose a great challenge for the control and prevention of the spread of the virus. Given the large number of asymptomatic cases that have been detected in Hebei, Spring Festival could greatly increase the risk of the virus being transmitted by those who are traveling or joining gatherings unaware that they are infected with the virus, since they would undoubtedly pass the virus to other people.

It is obvious that the fewer trips and fewer gatherings there are, the less possibility there will be for anyone who may be infected to transmit the virus to others, thus limiting the length of any chain of virus transmission.

Some localities have promised a bonus for those who stay where they work for Spring Festival. Some have promised to provide better meals for those who choose to carry on working during the festival. Some have encouraged residents to adjust their holidays in a way to avoid the travel rush. Many localities have also required that those who return from even low risk areas have to provide certificates for a negative nucleic acid test result.

Family reunions may be the sacrifice that residents have to make for their own health and for the overall containment of the spread of the virus.