China: Xi’an fights worst coronavirus outbreak of any Chinese city this year

Xi’an’s technology and industrial hub in China today recorded more than 100 new cases of COVID-19, bringing the local transmission contagion rate to the highest level for any Chinese city this year.

Xi’an announced 155 new local cases as of December 29, according to local sources. That brings the number of local infections to more than 1,100 since the outbreak began on December 9 and forced authorities to lock the city of 13 million people.

Despite the low incidence rate compared to outbreaks in many cities around the world, Xi’an officials have imposed strict restrictions on travel in and out of the city since December 23, as Beijing demands that any outbreak be quickly curtailed.

Samsung Electronics and Micron Technology, two of the world’s largest manufacturers of memory cards, have warned that lockdown could affect their manufacturing units in the region.

Xi’an is also a major tourist destination, attracting visitors to the collection of clay statues of soldiers buried with China’s first emperor more than 2,000 years ago.

Authorities have conducted multiple rounds of mass testing to detect infections. The sixth round started today, one day after the fifth.

Many residents are prohibited from leaving their residential complexes unless they go for a COVID-19 test or there is a serious reason and they have the relevant approval of the authorities.

Xi’an’s lockdown, now in its eighth day, coincides with the second anniversary of the first signs of a coronavirus outbreak in the central Chinese city of Wuhan.

As of yesterday, mainland China had recorded 101,890 confirmed cases of coronavirus, bringing the death toll to 4,636.

Source: AMPE