China local symptomatic COVID cases rises for a 4th day as Xian outbreak expands

The number of symptomatic coronavirus cases in China surged for the fourth day in a row, with Xian city reporting additional infections in a flare-up that has put 13 million people on lockdown.

Official data revealed on Tuesday that Xian reported 175 symptomatic cases, up from 150 the day before.

From December 9 through Monday, there were 810 confirmed cases in Xian, but no Omicron infections have been reported. Only a few cases of Omicron infection have been reported in China, mostly among international travellers and in the country's south.

Mainland, nationwide According to a statement from the National Health Commission, China detected 182 local symptomatic cases on Monday, up from 162 the day before and marking the fourth straight day of growth.

The national local symptomatic case load on Monday was also the largest daily total since the official daily bulletin began classifying asymptomatic carriers separately at the end of March last year.

Although the number of cases in Xian and China is tiny in comparison to many other nations, officials have imposed strict restrictions on travel both within and beyond the city, in accordance with a national guideline to quickly limit outbreaks.

Watch | China records biggest COVID-19 infection surge in 21 months, Xian emerges as hot spot

Residents of Xian have been prohibited from leaving the city without permission from their employer or the government since last week.

During a new round of mass testing that began on Monday, officials limited people's ability to go out for vital shopping and prohibited non-essential vehicles from entering the roadways.

On Monday, there were no additional deaths, bringing the total number of people killed in the country to 4,636. As of the end of December, mainland China reported 101,486 confirmed symptomatic cases, including both local and international cases.

(With inputs from agencies)