Management of and revitalization strategy for megacities under major public health emergencies: a case study of Wuhan

• Main Authors: Wu, Xianguo, Chen, Bin, Chen, Hongyu, Feng, Zongbao, Zhang, Yun, Liu, Yang
• Other Authors: School of Civil and Environmental Engineering
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: 2023
• Subjects: Engineering::Civil engineering; Epidemic Disease; Chinese Experience
• Online Access: https://hdl.handle.net/10356/164778
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in late 2019 has meant an uphill battle for city management. However, due to deficiencies in facilities and management experience, many megacities are less resilient when faced with such major public health events. Therefore, we chose Wuhan for a case study to examine five essential modules of urban management relevant to addressing the pandemic: (1) the medical and health system, (2) lifeline engineering and infrastructure, (3) community and urban management, (4) urban ecology and (5) economic development. The experience and deficiencies of each module in fighting the pandemic are analyzed, and strategies for revitalization and sustainable development in the future are proposed. The results show that in response to large-scale public health events, a comprehensive and coordinated medical system and good urban ecology can prevent the rapid spread of the epidemic. Additionally, good infrastructure and community management can maintain the operation of the city under the pandemic, and appropriate support policies are conducive to the recovery and development of the urban economy. These precedents provide insights and can serve as a reference for how to change the course of the pandemic in megacities that are still at risk, and they provide experience for responding to other pandemics.