COVID-19: Chinese City Jilin in Closes Borders Over ‘Major Risk’ of Virus Spread
In a bid to avoid a major risk of coronavirus spread, a northeastern Chinese city, Jilin has partially shut its borders and cut off transport links.
This is happening after the emergence of a local coronavirus cluster. This has brought about growing fears of a second wave of infections in China, where the virus emanated from.
Jilin has over four million population. It suspended its bus services on Wednesday, saying it will only allow residents to leave the city if they have tested negative for COVID-19 in the past 48 hours and complete an unspecified period of “strict self-isolation”.
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All cinemas, indoor gyms, internet cafes and other enclosed entertainment venues have been ordered by the local government said in a statement to shut immediately, and pharmacies were also instructed to report all sales of fever and antiviral medicines.
The city located in the eponymous province of Jilin has recorded a cluster of infections in the suburb of Shulan over the weekend.
This forced Jilin’s vice mayor to give warning on Wednesday that the situation was “extremely severe and complicated” and “there is major risk of further spread”.
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According to the government, the six new cases reported on Wednesday were linked to the Shulan cluster, bringing the total number of cases linked to a local laundry worker to 21.
