Hebei village declared a high-risk zone for virus

China has designated a village in the northern Hebei Province as a coronavirus high-risk zone after 14 new locally transmitted cases of COVID-19 were found.

Hebei Province, which surrounds the capital Beijing, also reported 30 asymptomatic cases on Monday, the provincial health commission said on Tuesday.

Among the confirmed cases, 11 were reported in the provincial capital of Shijiazhuang. All of the asymptomatic cases were also reported in the city. The other three cases were in the city of Xingtai.

The commission has classified Xiaoguozhuang Village in Gaocheng District of the city as a high-risk area for COVID-19, the only one now in China. The village is under lockdown.

Shijiazhuang will conduct citywide nucleic acid tests covering all citizens starting on Wednesday, said the city’s COVID-19 prevention and control headquarters. Kindergartens, elementary and middle schools in the city will also suspend in-person classes.

The provincial government-run Hebei Daily said the province had entered “wartime mode,” meaning investigation teams would be set up at provincial, city and district levels to trace the close contacts of those who have tested positive.

The province has reported 19 locally transmitted cases and 40 asymptomatic cases between January 2 and January 4.

A working group had been sent to Shijiazhaung and Xingtai to guide handling of the epidemic, the report said.

Nationally, China’s mainland reported 33 new COVID-19 cases on Monady, the National Health Commission said.