China says Wuhan water park pool party was payback after coronavirus, calls critics sour grapes

A Chinese state-backed newspaper attempted to do some damage control Tuesday after photos emerged from the weekend showing thousands of partygoers crowded into a water park in Wuhan, where the novel coronavirus was first reported before breaking out across the globe. Seen by some as a slap in the face to the rest of the world, photos from the first epicenter of the coronavirus showed crowds packed into the Wuhan Maya Beach Water Park to attend an electronic music festival Saturday. UKs The Telegraph ran a front-page story about the viral images with the headline: "Chinas Big Party: Lifes a beach in Wuhan as world pays virus price. "Global Times, an English-language newspaper backed by the Chinese Communist Party, slammed critics as"sour grapes"and championedWuhans strict lockdown measures and the testing of its nearly 11 million residents, saying the massive pool party was"payback. "WUHAN WATER PARK HOSTS MASSIVE POOL PARTY IN CHINAS CORONAVIRUS GROUND ZEROAs China continually seeks to skirt responsibility for the pandemic, Global Timespublished astory Tuesday titled Wuhans after-pandemic pool party sends a message to world: strict anti-virus measures have a payback. Wuhan, the city where COVID-19 was first reported and the one hit hardest by the virus, is now welcoming an influx of tourists, and its economy is reviving, which local residents believed should not only be seen as a sign of the citys return to normalcy, but also a reminder to countries grappling with the virus that strict preventive measures have a payback, the storyread. The viral photos from the water park were first circulated by the Agence France-Presse, and social media users around the globe quickly sounded the alarm. They stood in stark contrast to images of empty streets and closed public transportation when Wuhan was effectively sealed off from the rest of the world earlier this year. TWO CORONAVIRUS PATIENTS IN CHINA TEST POSITIVE FOR VIRUS