Most of the 175 Nepalis, rescued from Wuhan, the epicenter of coronavirus, have started leaving for home after testing negative for Covid-19, a disease caused by the new strain of coronavirus.

Government on February 15 had sent a Nepal Airlines plane to Wuhan to evacuate them from Hubei. They landed on February 16 and were taken to the Nepal Electricity Authority training centre in Khariparti, Bhaktapur, which was converted into a quarantine facility.

The 18 crew members of the flight also tested negative. The crew members were quarantined at the Nepal Drinking Water Corporation’s training centre, which is on the way to Nagarkot.

The National Public Health Laboratory, under the Department of Health Services, had collected nasal and throat samples from them on Saturday, for a second time.