This archive report was first published on 15 June 2020.
Beijing Locks Down Areas Amid Fresh Virus Outbreak ¶
China's capital city, Beijing, has locked down areas and launched a massive test and trace program after a fresh coronavirus outbreak was detected at a wholesale food market.
As of June 15, 2020, 79 cases linked to the Xinfadi market in the south of the city have been reported, fuelling fears of a second wave of infections.
City officials have locked down neighbourhoods and launched a massive test and trace program, with over 76,000 people connected to the market or living nearby having given throat swab samples.
Multiple residential compounds on the same block have been sealed off, and residents are receiving parcels from delivery drivers through gates.
It is not immediately clear how many households are under the new lockdowns, but the orders will affect thousands of people.
Officials have also said that some close contacts of cases linked to the market will have to wear 'smart thermometers' to monitor their body temperatures, while others have been sent to centralised quarantine facilities.
Beijing has begun mass testing workers from the Xinfadi food market, with nearly 200 testing points set up across the capital.
Several cities have warned residents not to travel to Beijing, and authorities are stepping up efforts to trace people who have visited the Xinfadi market.
At least one building management company has asked commercial tenants to declare if any of their staff had visited the market or been in contact with those who had.
The city government has also sacked two senior officials from Fengtai district, where Xinfadi is located, as well as the market's general manager.
The outbreak has turned the spotlight on the safety of Beijing's food chain, with shelves normally stocked with fruit at the Xianhui supermarket in central Beijing being empty on June 15, 2020.
