Coronavirus: China reports 5 new local cases, lowest since latest outbreak began
- Health official says by strictly following current strategy it can ‘hopefully be brought under complete control in a short period of time’
- Tough controls are still in place in some areas amid debate over country’s zero-tolerance approach to the virus
It was the lowest daily number since the latest wave of cases began in the eastern city of Nanjing, Jiangsu province on July 20 when a group of airport cleaners tested positive.
The outbreak – fuelled by the highly contagious Delta variant – rapidly spread across at least 17 provinces and more than 30 cities, including the capital Beijing, during the busy summer travel season.
But while the cases have been widespread, numbers have stayed relatively low. The National Health Commission said 1,258 people had been infected as of Thursday, with less than 10 new cases reported each day for the past three days.
Nanjing, where the outbreak started, has not recorded any cases since August 13 and the whole city was designated low risk on Thursday. Neighbouring Yangzhou, which has also been a hotspot, reported three new local cases.
