Beijing has decided to restrict movement and travel once again as dozens of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) fresh cases emerge, with authorities describing the new outbreak as ‘extremely severe.’
The authorities set up intense checkpoints, banned high-risk people from leaving the city, and closed down establishments such as sport and entertainment venues to curb the new spread of COVID-19 in the Chinese capital.
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According to Wuhan University biology department deputy director Yang Zhanqiu, the new outbreak seems to be a more infectious strain of the virus than the one that hit Wuhan—the city where the pandemic began.
“The epidemic situation in the capital is extremely severe. Right now, we have to take strict measures to stop the spread of Covid-19,” Beijing city spokesman Xu Hejian said in a press conference.
The report added that the new outbreak has been traced back to a food market in Beijing, which has been visited by over 200,000 people since May 30. As of today, over 8,000 workers from the ai market have been tested and sent to quarantine facilities. More than 30,000 restaurants have been disinfected as well, while some provinces and cities require people returning from Beijing to undergo quarantine.
Prior to the new cluster of cases that began on June 11, Beijing had reported no new cases for 56 straight days.
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