China’s Joint Prevention and Control Mechanism of the State Council has sent a working group to guide COVID-19 prevention and control in South China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, in order to tackle the latest flare-up as soon as possible, the authorities said on Tuesday, as the epidemic affecting Baise in Guangxi grows in number of cases.
From 12 pm Monday to 12 pm Tuesday, Baise reported 27 new locally transmitted COVID-19 cases. Baise has reported 126 confirmed cases in this round of flare-up, including 111 cases found in Debao county, according to the authorities on Tuesday.
Over 80 percent of the patients in this round of outbreak lived in the same village, but the risk of further spread is relatively high due to the long hidden transmission period and large flow of people during the Spring Festival, the authorities said at Tuesday’s press briefing.
With a permanent population of over 3.5 million, Baise in Guangxi asked all its residents to stay at home starting Monday, the first working day after Chinese Spring Festival holiday, to fend off the latest local COVID-19 flare-up.
Samples from two confirmed cases have been tested as Omicron strains, and genetic testing is under way, the local authorities said at Monday’s press briefing.
Baise is located about 120 kilometers from China-Vietnam border.
The region has conducted three rounds of nucleic acid tests for key areas and key groups, with 688,600 tests completed. The first case was likely infected outside Guangxi, and all the cases are in the same transmission chain, according to the authorities.
Residents line up for nucleic acid tests in Pingguo county, South China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region on Tuesday. Photo: CFP
