China on high alert as outbreaks linked to domestic tourists spread

A rash of coronavirus outbreaks, including in the capital Beijing, has put China on high alert mere months before the Winter Olympics, with officials warning that cases are likely to rise in the coming days.

The latest spate of infections has hit 11 provinces and is linked to the Delta variant, health officials have said. Most of the cases were linked to domestic tourists, given the country's closed borders.

According to a senior health official, over 100 infections in the current outbreak were linked to holidaymakers, including those who had gone on a self-driving holiday.

The outbreak is believed to have a foreign source, deputy director of disease control at the National Health Commission (NHC) Wu Liangyou said at a press briefing yesterday.

China reported 39 new infections, 35 of them local transmissions, yesterday. Mainland China has 561 active Covid-19 cases.

Although the number appears low compared with many other countries, China has a zero-tolerance approach to the virus, responding to each infection with stringent measures that include quarantine and even lockdowns of entire housing estates.

"It is expected that as the investigation and screening of at-risk groups continues, the number of cases detected in the next few days will continue to increase," said Mr Wu. "The scale of the epidemic may grow further."

The authorities have responded to the latest wave of infections with targeted lockdowns and mass testing while prompting residents to take their vaccine booster shots.

Some 2.246 billion doses of vaccines have been administered as at Sunday, according to the NHC.

Special teams have been sent to help in the pandemic response in Inner Mongolia, Gansu, Shaanxi and Ningxia, among China's less affluent areas.

Some 35,000 people in Inner Mongolia were told to stay home yesterday as Ejin county in the region went into lockdown.

Several cities, including Gansu's provincial capital Lanzhou, and parts of Inner Mongolia have already suspended bus and taxi services and closed tourist sites.

Inter-provincial tour groups in five areas where cases have been detected were suspended on Sunday.

In Beijing, the authorities have shut several pharmacies after several patients - infected after a road trip to Inner Mongolia - tried to self-medicate in a bid to avoid the onerous measures that come with testing positive.

Police have launched three investigations into alleged breach of virus measures - two infected people who initially concealed their symptoms, two residents escaping lockdown by climbing over a fence, and two pharmacy managers who sold cough and fever drugs in a breach of virus curbs.

Anyone buying cold or flu medicine has to register, in case he later turns out to have the virus.

With the Communist Party of China's sixth plenum on Nov 8-11 quickly approaching and the Winter Olympics coming shortly after on Feb 4-20, the authorities are keen to put a lid on the infections.

Beijing has gone into overdrive, ordering mass testing for all who have been to affected areas, even quarantining some.

It has restricted entry for those who have been to places with Covid-19 infections, Beijing's publicity vice-minister said yesterday, and residents have been advised to avoid large gatherings and "unnecessary travel" out of the capital.

China still has some of the world's toughest quarantine measures for travellers entering the country. It also recently raised its entry requirements for travellers from Singapore, calling for an additional nucleic acid test three days before their flight.