Wuhan, the provincial capital of China's Hubei province, saw residents gather in scores to mark the onset of New Year 2021. Visuals emerging from the Chinese city is in stark contrast to several other parts of the world, where night curfews and lockdowns have been imposed to prevent mass gatherings that may lead to COVID-19 transmission.

The restaurants, pubs and bars were operational in Wuhan, along with the rest of China, as the country has placed no major restrictions. This allowed party-hoppers to assemble in groups and hit the dance floors, or gather at prominent public spots and await the fireworks to welcome the new year. New Coronavirus Strain Enters China, Shanghai Confirms First Case of COVID-19 Variant 'B117' as UK Returnee Tests Positive.

The clip shared below shows hundreds of Wuhan residents gathered outside one of the key buildings of the city -- all illuminated as part of the New Year festivities. The residents, as seen in the video, are all pumped up and excited to wish each other "Happy New Year 2021".

Watch Video of Wuhan Residents Gathering for Countdown 2021

Notably, Wuhan was the place where the world's first known coronavirus case was reported in late 2019. For nearly four months, the city was crippled under lockdown and restrictions. The health crisis claimed over 3,900 lives in the city, and brought the economy to a standstill.

A year later, Wuhan has emerged to have recovered from the disaster. While the Chinese city was all in festive flavour for the New Year, other parts of the world including New Delhi, Washington, London and New York witnessed sombre celebrations due to the restrictions imposed in wake of the pandemic.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Dec 31, 2020 08:56 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).