Southeastern China reports new COVID-19 outbreak, authorities invoke strict measures

China, on Sunday, imposed strict measures after new coronavirus infections were reported from Putian city in the Fujian province of Shanghai. Chinese authorities have advised the public to not leave their town. In order to control the spread of the virus, the Chinese government has announced the suspension of city buses and train services until further notice. 

Furthermore, local authorities announced that they have decided to close cinemas, bars as well as other entertainment facilities. According to the notification issued by the city government, a person who needs to leave Putian for any essential trip must carry proof of a negative COVID-19 test.

Delta variant may be behind fresh COVID-19 outbreak

According to China's National Health Commission, at least 19 fresh cases of coronavirus were detected in the last 24 hours, of which one was reported in the Quanzhou area, according to AP. Fujian province has deployed more medical workers to assist mass nucleic acid testing in Putian.

Local authorities have suggested that the recent outbreak might have originated due to the Delta variant, imported by an adult patient who came from Singapore on 4 August 4, the South China Morning Post reported. The patient had been quarantined in Xiamen for 14 days and had tested negative three times after arrival to Putian. The authorities have also appealed to the schools to ramp up coronavirus prevention measures. Authorities have been advised to complete travel history investigations and nucleic acid testing of schools in high-risk areas of infection. Health authorities have reportedly ramped up vaccination efforts for teenagers. 

Earlier, China had achieved success in controlling the spread of the pandemic by imposing a stringent lockdown. In order to curb the spread of the virus, Chinese authorities have been invoking strict measures whenever they report a COVID outbreak in any of their province. According to China's National Health Commission, as of 12 September 12, the overall tally of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the country reached 95,199. Of them, 89,823 patients had been cured and discharged from hospitals. The total number of fatalities reported due to the virus in China is 4,636.  The total confirmed infections reported in the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions and Taiwan province reached 28,279. 

(With inputs from AP, Image: AP)