The authorities of the Chinese capital do not rule out that the case of infection with the omicron variant of coronavirus infection detected last Saturday is associated with a parcel from Canada, which was delivered to the territory of China through the United States and Hong Kong, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention of Beijing said.The first case of infection with omicron was detected in Beijing on January 15. The case turned out to be a resident of the Haidian district in the north-west of the city, over the past 14 days she has not left Beijing, but traveled to other areas of the city, where tests and checks of those who could have come into contact with the infected are also being conducted.
As part of the ongoing epidemiological investigation, 69 close contacts of a Beijing resident with omicron have already been identified, their PCR test results showed a negative result.
Infected with omicron, she herself informed the specialists that she had received an international mail from Canada, which was delivered through the territory of the United States and Hong Kong, the parcel was received on January 11, but it was not opened. Specialists took samples from the outer packaging, the inside of the parcel and the accompanying documentation, and some of them tested positive for the omicron coronavirus variant. Eight people who were in contact with the package were tested, their results were negative.
Specialists of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention of the Chinese capital urge residents to minimize purchases abroad and, accordingly, receiving mail from abroad. If parcels come from abroad, experts recommend wearing medical gloves and masks at any contact with them, opening the parcel outdoors and not carrying the outer packaging into the house. After contact with the parcels, it is necessary to thoroughly wash and disinfect your hands.
Since the beginning of the year, quite a lot of cases of COVID-19 have been detected in the country, daily indicators exceed 100, and sometimes 200 cases per day, which is quite alarming for a country that adheres to a policy of "zero tolerance" to the virus. The detection of "omicron" in Tianjin and Beijing has caused a lot of concern, since the Winter Olympic Games are due to begin in less than a month in the capital of China. The authorities have already introduced even stricter requirements for entry to the capital from other regions of the country. For example, from January 22, it will be mandatory to have two negative PCR tests, the first of which must be passed 48 hours before entering Beijing, the second - within 72 hours after arriving in the city. This requirement will be in effect at least until the end of March.
Over the past day, China has identified 223 cases of coronavirus infection, of which 163 are local and 60 imported. In total, 105,087 cases of coronavirus infection were detected during the epidemic in mainland China, 96,957 people recovered, 3,494 patients with COVID-19 remain in hospitals, 4,634 died. Import cases – 12,124, of which 10,838 people recovered.
