A special China-Europe freight train with 100 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) loaded with epidemic prevention materials leaves the Yiwu West Station in Yiwu, Zhejiang province on Jan 25. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

A special China-Europe freight train, comprising 100 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) loaded with epidemic prevention materials, left the Yiwu West Station in Yiwu, Zhejiang province on Jan 25.

The train is expected to arrive in Malaszevicze, Poland 13 days later. The anti-epidemic materials were ordered by Polish companies that have been commissioned by Polish authorities.

This was the first train carrying such materials to make its way from Yiwu to Europe this year.

The Zhejiang city started to run such a service in 2020, becoming the first Chinese city to open up a supply line to Europe through railway transport amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Eighty-two TEUs on the train are loaded with some 40,000 articles of protective garments, isolation gowns and other medical equipment that weigh 324 metric tons. The remaining 18 TEUs are loaded with items such as auto parts, hardware and groceries, which will be transported to Hamburg, Germany by the same train.