Photo:Xinhua

The coastal city of Dalian in Northeast China's Liaoning Province on Thursday completed nucleic acid sampling work in main urban areas, eight days after it reported its first recent COVID-19 case, said local health authorities.

The city sampled a total of 3.89 million residents for nucleic acid tests, Zhao Lian, deputy director of the Health Commission of Dalian, said at a press conference on Friday. 

The city will broaden the sampling range to residents in other areas, Zhao said.

The Dalian government on July 26 announced it would immediately begin citywide nucleic acid testing, pledging to cover the costs of the tests.

Dalian reported 11 new symptomatic cases on Thursday, bringing the local total to 68 symptomatic COVID-19 cases since the latest outbreak in the city began on July 22, with three symptomatic cases and 12 asymptomatic carriers reported that day, Zhao said. 

All who tested positive have been quarantined and are receiving treatment at a designated hospital and are in stable conditions, Zhao said.

Half of the 68 patients in Dalian work at a local seafood company, said Dalian CDC Deputy Director Meng Jun on Friday. The city is investigating and tracking imported food products, especially fresh-frozen seafood and meat, Meng added.

Another 15 COVID-19 cases, with travel history to Dalian or close contact with those returning from the city, have been found and reported in Beijing, other cities in Liaoning, and the Jilin, Heilongjiang and Fujian provinces, the Dalian government said on Friday.

Global Times