El Pasoans celebrate Chinese New Year, monitor coronavirus spread with family in China

A Lunar New Year celebration was held at the El Paso Museum of History today. Multiple East Asian communities were there to celebrate. This holiday is all about traveling to visit loved ones, something that is much harder to do with the spread of the deadly new coronavirus.

“This holiday is the most important holiday of the entire calendar year,” Elvira Mason, director of the Confucius Institute at New Mexico State University, said.

“To not be able to go home for Lunar New Year is very heartbreaking for many people,” Mason said.

More than 50 people have died and more than 1,900 have been infected by the virus, which originated in Wuhan, China.

“Wherever you are, you have to go back to your hometown and be with your family and friends and celebrate Chinese New Year,” Yan Ling said. Ling came to El Paso from China in August to teach Chinese at Mesita Elementary School.

She says this year is a little different for her family back home.

“Stay at home. You can have a smaller celebration with your near relatives,” Ling said.

Sharon Hsu is another Chinese teacher at Mesita who says even her home country is worried.

“My hometown (in) Taiwan, Taipei, a lot of people just wearing mask when they go out just be cautious,” Hsu said.

“We’ve been learning from the SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) in 2003, so people have a worry,” Hsu said.

The coronavirus brings back memories of the SARS outbreak, which infected 8,000 people and killed more than 700 people worldwide.

Hongxia Yang, a Chinese professor at New Mexico State University, says the government response has been different.

“The difference is faster clear and transparent, government act very faster,” Yang said.

Her family is monitoring the deadly virus, too.

“In our province, we have two confirmed cases. One is under control. The other is the gentlemen because his age in the 80s, and that’s sad, the gentlemen passed away,” Yang said.

She says everyone is trying to lie low this holiday.

“We just buy stuff and stay at home, eat, watch TV and have fun at home,” Yang said.

Even though she’s in the United States, she can use an app to order things online to deliver to her parents.

“You can buy almost everything, fresh produce or frozen, decorations, clothes, shoes, everything,” Yang said.

With now two confirmed coronavirus cases in the United States, “Many Chinese are canceling their celebrations in communities even like El Paso,” Elvira Mason said.

The Taiwanese Chamber of Commerce here in El Paso said it was also looking at postponing its celebrations since some of its members just returned home.