China’s latest Covid-19 outbreak continues to taper off
- A fourth straight day of single-figure local cases raises hopes the surge fuelled by the Delta variant is being brought under control
- However, more imported cases were reported highlighting the ongoing risk of more infections
On Friday, the National Health Commission reported four local infections – two in Jiangsu and two in Yunnan provinces – bringing the tally of local infections in the past month to 1,262. On the same day, 29 imported cases were also reported.
Russia, Myanmar and the United States are the main sources of imported cases, which have mainly been recorded in Shanghai, Guangdong, Sichuan and Yunnan.
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According to the latest health commission statistics, 1,817 people are currently infected, including 54 serious cases.
However, the latest clusters, which began a month ago in the eastern city of Nanjing, have not seen any deaths recorded.
This week Nanjing said it would start to resume public transport services that had been suspended during the outbreak, with Zheng Chunfa, deputy director of the municipal transport bureau, saying the city was now a “low-risk area”.
Services resumed on two metro routes on Friday, with three more set to return to normal next week.
Elsewhere on Friday, Yangzhou city in Jiangsu, one of the worst affected cities in the latest outbreak, announced its 13th round of mass testing in an effort to stop transmission.
China has repeatedly mobilised massive resources and manpower from other regions to stamp down Covid-19 clusters. In August, more than 70,000 Communist Party members were deployed to Yangzhou to support quarantined residents, according to state broadcaster CCTV.
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Covid-19 Delta variant cluster spreads in China’s eastern Jiangsu province
China has largely kept its borders closed as part of its strategy to contain the disease, also using tough lockdowns and mass tests to contain new clusters once they are discovered while ramping up its vaccination drive.
But the National Development and Reform Commission, the national planning body, has warned the health system needs improvements to cope with major outbreaks, especially as the pandemic continues outside its borders.
