After Shanghai, Beijing has new COVID-19 worries

Chinese authorities have been scrambling to contain the COVID-19 outbreak in Shanghai while Beijing is slowly snowballing into another hotspot for the virus. New COVID-19 outbreaks were reported in the Chinese capital over the weekend.

Authorities reported 20 fresh cases of COVID in a 12-hour period in Beijing on Saturday, CNN reported. A school located in the city was also shut down after new infections were detected.

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Officials have responded with various counter-infection strategies in Bejing, which have been previously seen in cities like Shanghai. “Control management” was introduced in the Chinese capital, which restricts residents from leaving the area without getting tested.

Beijing residents will also undergo mass testing for COVID-19, a move that has drawn parallels with lockdowns in Shanghai. Officials said tour groups will be specifically tested as multiple cases were detected in elderly tourists.

A village, located in the suburban areas of Beijing, was sealed off with mass testing procedures in place after one positive was linked to the area, CNN reported. The name of the village was unclear.

Tian Wei, a representative from the municipal office said that “the whole city must act immediately”, CNN reported. Wei added, “The city has recently seen several outbreaks involving multiple transmission chains, and the risk of continued and undetected transmission is high. The situation is urgent and grim.”

National records show that at least 22 fresh cases of COVID-19 were detected in the capital city on Saturday. Shanghai, on the other hand, is in a worse situation. 

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Mainland China reported 24,326 new community-transmitted infections on Saturday, with the vast majority of them asymptomatic cases in Shanghai, where enforcement of a strict “zero-COVID” strategy has drawn global attention.

China has doubled down on the approach even in face of the highly transmissible omicron variant. The zero-COVID policy warded off many deaths and widespread outbreaks when faced with less transmissible variants through mass testing and strict lockdowns where people could not leave their homes.