Chinese province vows to control Covid-19 outbreak ‘by end of August’

Name: Covid-19 Delta variant cluster spreads in China’s eastern Jiangsu province
Uploaded: 2021-08-15T06:04:30.000Z
Duration: 1 min 56 s
Description: Covid-19 Delta variant cluster spreads in China’s eastern Jiangsu province

Chief of health commission in Henan, one of the centres of China’s recent outbreak, cites ‘determination to fight this tough battle well’

Number of new infections continues to drop, with eastern province of Jiangsu still accounting for the majority

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China has launched rounds of mass testing for Covid-19 after a resurgence of cases in several provinces. Photo: Xinhua

Amanda Leein Beijing

Published: 2:04pm, 15 Aug 2021Updated: 9:08pm, 15 Aug 2021

China has reported 53 new symptomatic and 29 asymptomatic coronavirus cases as the authorities vowed to control the country’s month-long outbreak.

The symptomatic cases included 24 that were locally transmitted – 18 in the eastern province of Jiangsu, five in Henan and one in Hunan – while 29 were from abroad. Of the 29 asymptomatic cases recorded on Saturday, 22 were from abroad and all of the seven locally transmitted infections were in Henan, the National Health Commission (NHC) said on Sunday.

Kan Quancheng, director of Henan’s health commission, has pledged to contain the outbreak in the province “by the end of August”. The virus was first found there in a hospital in Zhengzhou.

“[We have the] confidence and determination to fight this tough battle well, to control the outbreak as quickly as possible, to ensure that the outbreak is well controlled by the end of August, and to provide protection for economic and social development,” Kan said on Saturday, according to local media.

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Covid-19 Delta variant cluster spreads in China’s eastern Jiangsu province

The number of new infections has declined steadily in recent days, but the latest outbreak in China, which the authorities said was driven by the Delta variant, has again caused disruption to the world’s second-largest economy, forcing the closure of restaurants and entertainment venues and the cancellation of high-profile trade events.

The authorities have since launched investigations into possible dereliction of duty among local government officials in Henan and Jiangsu provinces, where the latest infections have been centred.

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