Feng, the guesthouse manager, was glad that he had not rushed to buy the drug, adding that he did not believe it could cure the disease. "The World Health Organization announced earlier that there is no medicine specially designed to prevent or cure the novel coronavirus," he said.

But he understood why people had lined up to buy the medicine, adding, "Everyone wants to protect themselves and to clutch at any straw they can during the epidemic."

According to statistics from Sina Corp, as of Feb 12, more than 100,000 items about the epidemic had been discussed on Sina Weibo.

Since Jan 20, to help the public follow and understand the outbreak, more than 100 government agencies, including the National Health Commission, the Ministry of Civil Affairs and the Ministry of Education, have held many news conferences and posted more than 850,000 items of related information online.

Sina Corp said in a statement, "Internet companies should also contribute to winning the battle against the disease by taking on their social responsibilities."

Sina Weibo has invited doctors, patients and their families in Wuhan to talk about the epidemic. It has also warned users who intentionally falsify information. In serious cases, users' accounts have been closed.

Government agencies have put up 25,000 posts on Weibo to clarify that certain online information is either problematic or totally forged, while Sina Corp said it has punished 428 Weibo users for falsifying information.