Coronavirus: Beijing municipal government orders partial lockdown for city and elevates emergency response amid latest outbreak
- Next three days ‘crucial’ to contain infections linked to city food market, a top Chinese epidemiologist says
- 32 new cases in the country linked to Xinfadi market as Sichuan province traces contacts of woman who travelled from Beijing
Beijing on Tuesday announced a partial lockdown for the capital city and elevated its emergency response for the coronavirus to the second-highest level after reporting a cluster of infections tied to a food market.
Chen Bei, deputy secretary general of the Beijing Municipal Government, said at a televised press conference on Tuesday evening that all neighbourhoods in districts that have been classified as high- and medium-risk areas will be closed immediately and all residents must stay home and take nucleic acid tests to confirm if they have been infected. No visitors will be allowed into these areas.
In addition, all primary and secondary schools will switch to online learning and all universities will be closed. Entertainment venues will shut down as well.
Chen said that despite the new outbreaks it would not be necessary to suspend production, but businesses are encouraged to adopt staggered office hours and work-from-home practices to lower the risk of transmission.
The escalation of the emergency response marked a reversal for the city, which had lowered the alarm level less than two weeks ago.
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New coronavirus outbreak at Beijing food market fuels fears of second wave of cases in China
Wu Zunyou, a top Chinese epidemiologist, said the next three days will be crucial in controlling the latest outbreaks, as the country reported 32 more cases related to the Beijing market cluster.