The southern Chinese city of Sanya, a premier beach destination that boasts palm-fringed, white sand beaches and clear blue waters, on Thursday launched temporary lockdown measures in many districts as the city detected 72 confirmed cases and one asymptomatic carrier within four days. With the launching of a makeshift hospital with more than 1,800 beds, experts expressed confidence that this wave of the epidemic could be curbed promptly and effectively.
This round of the epidemic was caused by an imported variant, the Omicron BA.5.1.3 strain, according to local authorities on Thursday. The central fishing port of Yazhou district was the origin of the outbreak starting on Monday, which was likely to have been imported through trading with overseas fishermen, the local authorities said during Thursday’s press briefing.
Most infections are related to fishing ports, fishing boats, fishermen and fishing markets, and the number of infections is on the rise, with a possible transmission risk among communities, the authorities said.
Hainan on Thursday issued a notice that fishermen in the province are required to complete nucleic acid testing five times a week, and report and test promptly before and after going out to the sea, as Sanya on Monday detected one confirmed local case, who is a fish vendor at a fishing port in Yazhou district in the city.