'Beijing Covid-19 situation extremely severe'

Beijing's coronavirus situation is "extremely severe", a city official warned Tuesday (June 16) as 27 new infections were reported in the Chinese capital from a cluster has sparked a huge trace-and-test programme.

"The epidemic situation in the capital is extremely severe," Beijing city spokesman Xu Hejian warned at a press conference held today.

The coronavirus resurgence -- believed to have started at the city's sprawling Xinfadi wholesale food market -- has prompted alarm as China had largely brought its outbreak under control through mass testing and draconian lockdowns imposed earlier in the year.

The new cases took the number of confirmed infections in Beijing over the past five days to 106, as authorities locked down almost 30 communities in the city and tested tens of thousands of people.

China had eased much of its anti-coronavirus measures in recent months as the government all but declared victory against the disease that emerged in Wuhan late last year.

The World Health Organization had already expressed concern about the cluster, pointing to Beijing's size and connectivity.

Officials in the city said they would test stall owners and managers at all of its food markets, restaurants and government canteens.

On Tuesday, the capital's transport commission banned taxi- and ride-hailing services from carrying passengers out of the city, according to state news agency Xinhua.

All indoor sports and entertainment venues in Beijing were ordered to shut on Monday, while some other cities across China warned they would quarantine arrivals from the capital.

The National Health Commission also reported four new domestic infections in Hebei province, which surrounds the capital, and a case reported in Sichuan province was linked to the Beijing cluster.

Authorities were racing to track people from Beijing who had travelled to other parts of China, and encouraging those who visited the capital to get tested.

Source: Agencies 


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