(CNN) Countries are scrambling to evacuate their citizens from Wuhan, the epicenter of the novel coronavirus outbreak in Hubei province, as the number of cases overtake the 2003 SARS outbreak inside mainland China. Around 250 French citizens will be transported in the first aircraft, while 100 people from other EU countries will take the second plane. Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the government is preparing to send a second and third chartered flight to Wuhan. South KoreaFour charter flights were sent to Wuhan on Wednesday, where almost 700 South Korean citizens have applied to fly out. TurkeyMore than two dozen Turkish citizens in Wuhan will be evacuated in the next couple of days, the Turkish ambassador in China, Abdulkadir Emin Onen, told Haberturk news channel on Wednesday.

Source: CNN January 29, 2020 23:15 UTC