China has taken drastic action to stop new coronavirus outbreak

The Chinese capital of Beijing has reported the first two cases of the locally transmitted coronavirus in nearly six months, both linked to an alarming outbreak of the highly contagious virus. Delta variant of the virus in a populated city in the east of the country.

China’s National Health Commission notified on Thursday 49 new cases, between them 24 community-transmitted infections in three other provinces, with what is already 175 infections associated with the outbreak in the eastern city of Nanjing.

Although the national number is well below the 86 reported cases – the highest since January – the spread of the virus between provinces has raised alarm bells in the country. after more than a year with very low figures and return to almost total normality.

Authorities said the two Beijing cases involved a man and his wife who recently visited a city in Hunan province associated with the Nanjing outbreak.

Close contacts of the two infected have been isolatedauthorities said, Chinese state news agency Xinhua reported.

The coronavirus was first detected worldwide in the central city of Wuhan in China in late 2019.

Despite being the cradle of the pandemic, China has contained its spread with enormous success.

Strict measures

Since March 2020, the official tally of cases and victims – which barely exceeds 3,600 in a country of 1,400 million inhabitants – remains at very low levels, and the occasional shoots are crushed with strict measures, including the total isolation of entire towns and the testing of all their inhabitants.

The current situation, however, poses a greater threat, as the Delta variant has been identified as the cause of regrowth in Nanjing, which is the capital of Jiangsu Province and a major industrial center, inhabited by 9.3 million people. people and with important transport links. with the rest of the country.

It is also presented as a litmus test for the effectiveness of the China’s massive immunization program, which has already delivered more than 1.5 billion doses, on a scale and at a speed unprecedented in the world.

The Nanjing outbreak was detected last week among more than a dozen cleaners at Nanjing Lukou International Airport, one of the busiest in China, through which more than 30 million passengers have passed. in 2019, according to official figures.

The authorities then launched a campaign of tests for its more than 9 million inhabitants on July 21. A second round of testing ended over the weekend and a third started on Wednesday.

So far, there are already at least 175 cases linked to the outbreak at the airport, caused by the Delta variant.

Despite the measures, the virus appears to have already spread beyond Jiangsu Province.

People who flew from Nanjing to other parts of the country have tested positive for the coronavirus in several provinces, such as southern Guangdong, Sichuan, southwest China, and northern Liaoning .

There are also concerns about a possible secondary outbreak in Nanjing linked to a recent performance held at Zhangjiajie National Park in Hunan province, which 3,000 spectators attended on July 22.

The two cases reported in Beijing are among those linked to that broadcast and are the first in the city in 179 days, authorities said.

Parts of Nanjing are at “high” risk for coronavirus and others have been placed at “medium” risk.

Cinemas, gymnasiums, bars and libraries have been closed and the number of people who can gather has been reduced. Authorities ordered pharmacies to stop selling fever and cough medicine that may mask symptoms of Covid-19, local media reported.