Northern China’s Hebei province on Sunday completed a mass testing program in an effort to contain the country’s worst coronavirus outbreak in months, according to the province’s deputy mayor, Xu Jianpei.
Some 17 million people were tested at the unit – more than 10.2 million in the provincial capital of Shijiazhuang and 6.7 million in the city of Xingtai, according to the state news agency Xinhua.
Mass testing began last Wednesday, when both cities reported the biggest local outbreak in mainland China in months.
On Sunday, Hebei province reported 82 cases of Covid-19 transmitted locally, according to the country’s National Health Commission. Among the new local cases, 77 were reported in Shijiazhuang, while five were confirmed in Xingtai.
Last week, China placed Shijiazhuang in confinement, imposing some of the most stringent measures since the country largely contained the spread of the coronavirus in March.
Residents have been banned from leaving the city and are required to self-quarantine at home for seven days after taking the compulsory Covid-19 test. All public transport was suspended, the main highways were blocked, the train and bus stations closed and flights canceled.