Volunteers from the Beijing Blue Sky Rescue Team spray disinfectant in Yuegezhuang wholesale market in Fengtai district, Beijing. The market is about 12 kilometers from the Xinfadi market, which is linked to the recent COVID-19 outbreak in the capital city. Photo: people.cn

Beijing is expanding its strict closed-off management to all residential communities, as the city raised its COVID-19 emergency response level to 2 from 3.

The capital previously required strict lockdown measures on residential communities around areas where infections were found. Now, the measure has been expanded to all the city's residential communities, said officials at a meeting held by the standing committee of the Beijing Municipal government on Tuesday.

Key areas and people should receive nucleic acid tests, and prevention levels in places like nursing houses and schools should be elevated.

The meeting stressed that the response level and prevention measures will vary as the situation evolves, and that Beijing should adopt the most rigorous and decisive policies to prevent both imported and local infections.

The city should round up all those who should be rounded up, test all those who should be tested and quarantine all those who should be isolated, said officials at the meeting, vowing to conduct comprehensive inspections of the city's markets and restaurants. 

Beijing raised its COVID-19 emergency response level to 2 from 3 after the number of local infections soared over 100 in the capital in a few days.

Beijing reported 31 new infections on Tuesday, with six asymptomatic patients.

Global Times