Six villages, three buildings and an industrial zone were among the closed areas.
Beijing:
China’s Beijing sealed 10 areas of its northeastern Shunyi district on Tuesday, the first blockade on the Chinese capital since the last coronavirus outbreak in June and July.
The city has reported 16 infections and three asymptomatic cases since December 18, when the first cases were found. Most of the cases occurred in Shunyi, which has banned couriers from entering residential complexes.
Six villages, three buildings and an industrial zone were among the closed areas, a Beijing municipal official said at a news conference.
While Beijing’s new cases are modest compared to June and July, municipal authorities have stepped up measures to control the coronavirus, which has appeared in three districts, where hundreds of thousands of residents have been tested.
“The capital’s COVID prevention and control (efforts) must go into emergency mode,” a city spokesman said at the press conference.
The Beijing government said it was canceling large-scale gatherings, such as temple fairs and sporting events, and controlling the size of offline events, such as annual festivals.
On Sunday, it said it would increase the number of carriages in the subway system to disperse commuters and limit attendance at scenic spots and entertainment venues to 75% of capacity.
Live music events were canceled and a light show was canceled on New Years Day. Educational institutions, from elementary schools to the prestigious Tsinghua University, have banned the unnecessary entry of outsiders.
Elementary and some middle school students will also start winter break up to two weeks early next month, a peak travel period before Lunar New Year in mid-February.
Beijing has also urged residents to stay home for the holidays, and officials in its northern Yanqing district turned on loudspeakers to warn residents not to travel outside the region.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is posted from a syndicated channel.)
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