Beijing's Shunyi district enters 'state of war' against COVID-19

Beijing's Shunyi district, where two new COVID-19 cases were reported on Friday, has entered the "state of war" to battle against the virus, said Zhi Xianwei, executive deputy head of the district, at a news conference on Saturday.

Emergency measures such as closed management, disinfection and large-scale testing have been implemented, he said.

The residential buildings are in closed management and all the people living in the area are required to undergo testing. The district plans to give nucleic acid testing to 800,000 residents in the area. By 12:30 pm Saturday, 119,918 samples had been collected, said Zhi.

Based on the epidemiological investigation of the two new cases, the authority has identified 96 close contacts and 180 secondary close contacts.

Five of those contacts have tested positive and their samples have been sent to Ditan Hospital for further medical investigation.

Pang Xinghuo, deputy head of the Beijing Center for Disease Control and Prevention, said at the news conference that Beijing reported two new cases on Friday, both in Shunyi.

"It's possible that we will discover more cases in the future," she said. "With the New Year Holiday and Spring Festival approaching, travel will go up, which will in turn increase the infection risks. Thus, people should wear masks when it's necessary or are uncertain about the risks."

Li Yi, spokesman for the Beijing Municipal Education Commission, said at the conference, that the plans for primary and middle schools under the latest epidemic situation are under discussion.

The college students can still go back home for their winter vacation as long as all the prevention and control measures are strictly followed.