Beijing, Jan 27 (AFP) Beijing authorities on Monday reported the Chinese capital's first death from a new deadly virus that has rapidly spread across the country, killing more than 80 people and causing global alarm.

The victim was a 50-year-old man who had visited the central city of Wuhan, the epicentre of the outbreak, on January 8 and developed a fever after returning to Beijing seven days later, the city's health commission said.

He went to a hospital on January 21 and died on Monday of respiratory failure, the commission said.

A total of 80 of more than 2,700 cases have been recorded in the Chinese capital of 20 million people.

The authorities have enacted sweeping travel restrictions across the country in a desperate bid to stop the virus from spreading further.

Transport bans have been enacted in Wuhan and other cities in central Hubei province, effectively corralling some 56 million people.

Beijing has halted long-distance bus service to and from the city. (AFP)

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)