8 new cases found in Manzhouli

Border city in Inner Mongolia has seen 28 confirmed infections since Saturday

Manzhouli, a border city in the Inner Mongolia autonomous region that is under the jurisdiction of Hulunbuir, reported eight new locally transmitted confirmed cases of COVID-19 on Monday.

Officials told a news conference on Monday afternoon that by 2 pm, Manzhouli had reported 28 local confirmed cases since three residents tested positive on Saturday.

"The first round of mass nucleic acid testing covering all local residents was completed on Monday morning, collecting 175,554 samples, 60 of which came back positive," said Song Jixiang, deputy mayor of Manzhouli.

"The city started the second round of testing at 8 am on Monday."

The 28 confirmed cases were among those who tested positive, with further tests underway on the remainder. On Sunday, one residential community in the city's Dongshan subdistrict was listed as a high-risk area for COVID-19.

Manzhouli has suspended all public transportation services, including flights, trains, long-haul buses and taxis since Saturday.

No vehicles are allowed to leave or enter the city except for those engaged in transporting goods and those engaged in epidemic prevention and control, medical aid and emergency rescue.

Tongliao, Inner Mongolia, reported one local confirmed case and one asymptomatic carrier on Monday, both related to the cases in Manzhouli, the city's epidemic prevention and control headquarters said.

Inner Mongolia has suspended all cross-province group tours, the region's culture and tourism bureau said on Monday.

In Heilongjiang province, Nehe, a county-level city in Qiqihar, reported a local asymptomatic carrier on Sunday, officials said at a news conference on Monday morning.

The 59-year-old villager in the town of Liuhe tested positive for the virus during nucleic acid testing conducted on those arriving from outside the province on Sunday morning, said Li Qingchun, Nehe's deputy Party secretary and deputy director of the Nehe epidemic prevention and control headquarters.

He was then transferred to a hospital designated for COVID-19 treatment in Qiqihar and was diagnosed as an asymptomatic carrier after joint consultation with experts.

The man had visited Manzhouli from Nov 16 to 23 and attended a wedding ceremony on Nov 20.

The first round of mass nucleic acid testing in Nehe, covering all local residents, was conducted on Sunday. It collected 279,716 samples, which all came back negative.

Public venues such as educational institutions, entertainment facilities and private clinics in Nehe suspended services from Sunday. Highways in Qiqihar were suspended until further notice on Sunday.