Photo: VCG

 South China's Guangzhou on Saturday issued a stay-at-home order for residents in several streets. The residents have been asked to stop all activities that are not necessary for daily life. This comes after a surge in fresh COVID-19 infections in the city. 

According to a statement published by Guangzhou government in South China's Guangdong Province, residents in fives streets in Liwan district have been asked to stay at home, and only one person of each household is allowed to buy life necessities every day.

In Liwan district, all entertainment venues, indoor sports venues, wholesale markets and childcare institutions were asked to close. Restaurants are only allowed for take-away orders and schools, except for junior high and senior high, must suspend their offline courses.

At Saturday's press conference Shen Ying, deputy head of Guangzhou Municipal Transportation Bureau, said that seven subway stations and 177 bus stations of 83 bus routes in areas under restrictive measures only allowed passengers to get off.

For citywide restrictions, big celebrations and gatherings are not allowed. Nursing homes, child welfare institutions and service institutions for newborns and religious venues are subjected to closed management. Indoor public venues such as entertainment venues are open at 75 percent capacity, according to the Guangzhou city government. 

Four streets in Liwan district were categorized as medium risk zones on Saturday. 

The city reported one new confirmed COVID-19 case and five new asymptomatic cases on Saturday. Guangzhou has reported five confirmed cases and 15 silent infections since the first case was reported on May 21. 

The majority of these cases were related to the first confirmed case, as they either lived together or had dinner with the case in indoor venues, according to Guangzhou health authority. The first case, a 75-year-old man was infected with the variant first seen in India. 

The spread of the virus in fresh COVID-19 infection in Guangzhou was both fast and strong, local health authority said. 

Guangzhou's fresh COVID-19 infections have spread to a neighbor city. Nanhai district of Foshan, Guangdong Province, reported one new confirmed case and two asymptomatic cases on Saturday, after nucleic acid testing of three people from Guangzhou came back positive. The three were quarantined and treated in a local hospital, and their living places have also been disinfected. Nanhai district is expanding nucleic acid testing to more residents.

After a surge in COVID-19 infections this week, Yantian district of Shenzhen on Saturday started a district-wide nucleic acid testing. Earlier this week several communities in Futian district in Shenzhen launched nucleic acid testing for all the locals. 

Shenzhen reported one new asymptomatic carrier on Saturday, bringing the total number of silent carriers to 10 since the city reported the first locally transmitted asymptomatic case on May 21.

The recent infections in Shenzhen were related to the city's Yantian Port, and most silent carriers worked for an international cargo ship.

Global Times