Shanghai reports a community case in Qingpu
Residents line up for polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test in Shanghai.
Shanghai reported a COVID-19 community case on Sunday, after detecting zero community infections for more than 10 days.
The 64-year-old woman, a resident of a village in suburban Qingpu District, tested abnormal during a mixed-tube polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test on Saturday and was later diagnosed as an asymptomatic case. She has been put under medical observation at a local COVID-19 designated hospital.
As a result, the city designated a high-risk area and a medium-risk area in Liantang Town of Qingpu, according to Wu Qianyu, a senior official with the Shanghai Health Commission.
"Shanghai is facing rising pressure on COVID-19 prevention amid more frequent movement (by people) ahead of the National Day holiday and multiple domestic resurgences," Wu told the city's COVID-19 press briefing.
She urged residents to avoid cross-provincial travel during the weeklong holiday, which will start on October 1. Countryside or urban tours within Shanghai are recommended during the holiday.
If the travel is absolute necessary, travelers must have a 48-hour negative nucleic acid test report to take planes and trains as well as inter-provincial coaches and ships through the end of October.
She asked travelers to bring masks, disinfection wipes and hand sanitizer on any trips they take and avoid gathering with others in public areas and tourist attractions.
A community case was reported in Shanghai's suburban Qingpu District on Sunday.
People returning from domestic provinces who have tested positive for COVID-19 must report to their neighborhood or village committees or companies, receive PCR tests and regularly scan venue codes. They are also required to go to a hospital if they show symptoms such as fevers or coughs, she added.
A weeklong central quarantine is mandatory for people coming or returning from domestic COVID-19 high-risk areas, while a week of home quarantine is required for those coming from medium-risk areas.
People returning from low-risk areas are asked to take two PCR tests within three days after arrival.
In addition to the accommodation, the new case in Shanghai had been to the neighborhood committee of her community, a nearby post office and a community in suburban Songjiang District.
A total of 931 close contacts of the new case have been traced and put under central quarantine, with 582 among them testing negative. About 360,000 related people have been screened, 310,000 of whom tested negative.
A high-risk as well as medium-risk area have been designated in a village in Qingpu.
The Qingpu government promised to guarantee life and medical services for residents under lockdown, especially 399 students from a kindergarten and an elementary school within the high- and medium-risk areas.
The students have shifted to online classes from home and will receive homework tutoring and psychological counseling, said Zhang Yan, deputy director of Qingpu.
Shanghai requires people traveling or returning to the city from other provinces to report their itinerary online before arrival.
More than 174,000 pieces of information have been received through the online reporting platform since it was launched on September 9.
People from high- or medium-risk areas have been detected in time, which has effectively reduced the risk of transmission, Liu Yingfeng, deputy director of the Shanghai Big Data Center, noted.
Liu warned that those who cause the spread of the coronavirus just because they refuse to make the online report or conceal their true itinerary will be held legally responsible.
A high-risk area has been designated in Qingpu District.
