Chinese city records new coronavirus cases, launches emergency response plan

A Chinese city, Urumqi, the capital of Xinjiang, has launched an emergency response plan following the reported 16 new coronavirus cases in the city.

While disclosing this on Saturday July 18, 2020, an official said that the city had suspended gatherings and ordered communities to restrict visits to other households.

The city urged people stop unnecessary trips outside the city and ordered infection tests for anyone who needed to leave Urumqi, aiming to prevent the spread of the virus.

The regional government said all recent new infections and asymptomatic cases reported in the autonomous region were in Urumqi.

Rui Baoling, director of the disease control and prevention centre in Urumqi, disclosed that recent cases in the city were associated with a cluster of activities, with all confirmed cases and asymptomatic infections reported in Tianshan District, CCTV said.

“The epidemic has developed rapidly,” Rui was quoted saying.

Xinjiang, home to most of China’s Uighur ethnic minority, has so far mostly avoided the worst of the coronavirus pandemic which erupted in the central Chinese city of Wuhan late last year.

As of July 17, the region reported a total of 17 coronavirus cases, plus 11 asymptomatic cases. Another 269 people were under medical observation, according to the regional health commission.

It reported another 12 asymptomatic cases as of noon on Saturday.