Coronavirus: Kashgar confirms 22 new cases but says outbreak now under control

A total of 183 people were found to be infected with the pathogen, but 161 were asymptomatic, health official says

‘We can now basically rule out the possibility of any further spread of the disease,’ he says

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A man takes a coronavirus test in Kashgar’s Shufu county, where the latest outbreak started. Photo: Xinhua

Published: 9:30pm, 28 Oct 2020Updated: 10:04pm, 28 Oct 2020

Authorities in the west China city of Kashgar on Wednesday confirmed 22 new Covid-19 infections but said the spread of the disease was now under control.

Wang Xijiang, deputy director of the regional centre for disease control and prevention, said 183 people tested positive for the coronavirus on Tuesday, but of those 161 were classed as asymptomatic.

The city recently completed the testing of 4.7 million residents after scores of coronavirus patients were identified on Saturday in a village in Shufu county, about 24km (15 miles) outside the city centre.

“After three days of non-stop effort, we completed the nucleic acid testing for all residents at 5pm on Tuesday,” Wang told a press conference.

“Besides the 183 who tested positive, all the others were negative. So we can now basically rule out the possibility of any further spread of the disease,” he said.

The swift implementation of a mass testing programme had been crucial in identifying the infected patients, even though most of them did not show any symptoms, he said.

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