At least 5 Chinese cities reported a coronavirus outbreak due to the deadly Delta variant that the state-run media is calling the worst incident since the Wuhan spread of the original COVID-19.

The origin of the outbreak was reportedly from Nanjing where it quickly spread to five other provinces and Beijing. Since the beginning of the outbreak, almost 200 people have become afflicted with the disease after it was first discovered on July 20 at the Nanjing city airport.

Chinese COVID-19 Delta Variant Outbreak

Authorities suspended all flights from the city's airport until August 11, the local media reported. City officials have also ordered testing of individuals across the entire region as residents criticize them for their alleged "failure" to control the disease.

Xinhua News, the state-run media, said that all of Nanjing's residents, which number 9.3 million people, will be tested in accordance with city officials. Online users have posted on social media platforms showing long lines of people in testing areas. Authorities have urged residents to wear face masks and maintain one-meter social distancing while avoiding talking in line, BBC reported.

Officials reported that the massive outbreak was due to the highly contagious Delta variant which has been spreading quickly worldwide. They noted that the spread of the infection was sped up due to how busy the airport was.

Nanjing Health Official Ding Jie said that infections were linked to cleaners who were working on a flight from Russia and arrived in the city on July 10. The state-run media reported that the cleaners did not follow strict hygiene protocols, which led to the spread of the infection.

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The individuals were tested and were confirmed positive for the coronavirus on July 20. Nanjing authorities are now on "high alert" following the announcement and plan to test 1.9 million residents per day.

Chinese officials have previously been successful in stifling the spread of previous outbreaks using strictly enforced lockdowns, quarantines, and controls on international travel. The country has observed surges in the number of infections that have been relatively less significant than other nations since the beginning of the pandemic, NBC News reported.

Surge of Infections

Ding said on Tuesday that the number of cases reported in the region has skyrocketed in recent days. The official said early cases transmitted among the aircraft cabin cleaners quickly spread across various regions in the Asian country. Ding noted social activities and work environment contamination as the primary sources of the outbreak.

The health official said authorities tracked down the close contacts that the cleaners have and are conducting testing to see if they have become infected with the virus. Ding said new cases are constantly being discovered in the region, NPR reported.

However, Chinese authorities have not disclosed whether or not any of the infected residents were vaccinated against the COVID-19. The incident comes as many nations in Southeast Asia are turning to other vaccines amid the low efficacy of the Chinese-made treatment.

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