Beijing's new cases are declining, but the epidemic has already spread to Hebei and Sichuan—many mysteries still remain unsolved.

On June 15, Beijing reported 27 new confirmed cases, fewer than the 36 reported the previous day. According to Wu Zunyou, chief epidemiologist at China's Center for Disease Control and Prevention, if the number of new cases does not surge significantly today, it can be said that the epidemic has stabilized at this scale.

On June 15 (yesterday), Beijing reported 27 new confirmed cases, a decrease from the 36 cases reported the previous day.

Just last night, Wu Zunyou, chief epidemiologist at China's Center for Disease Control and Prevention, said in an interview with Bai Yansong on CCTV's "News 1+1," "The number of cases reported in Beijing over the next three days will determine the trajectory of this outbreak in the capital. … Those who are already infected are likely to start showing symptoms within the next couple of days. If the reported numbers don’t surge significantly over the next two days, we can say that the epidemic has essentially stabilized at its current scale."

However, yesterday Hebei reported 4 new confirmed cases, and Sichuan added 1 more—all linked to vendors or close contacts from Beijing’s Xinfadi market. This latest wave of the outbreak has now spread to four provinces and cities: Beijing, Liaoning, Hebei, and Sichuan.

Beijing's epidemic prevention and control efforts have entered a "wartime state." According to a press conference held by the Beijing Municipal Government, nearly 100,000 community workers from the city's 7,120 communities (villages) have joined the battle against the virus. As of yesterday, nearly 200,000 people who had visited the Xinfadi market since May 30 have been traced. These individuals are now being arranged for nearby nucleic acid testing within their respective communities, while also being asked to stay home under medical observation.

At the 69th meeting of the Beijing COVID-19 Prevention and Control Leading Group and the 30th meeting of the Capital's Strict Entry Management Joint Prevention and Control Coordination Mechanism, held yesterday afternoon, it was emphasized that high-risk individuals must be strictly restricted from leaving Beijing. Those who have already departed should promptly notify local authorities to prevent the spread of the epidemic.

Hebei, Sichuan, and Liaoning—regions where confirmed cases have been identified—have also swiftly implemented stricter epidemic prevention measures. So far, the outbreak appears to be under control. For instance, in Liaoning, Shenyang reported 2 confirmed cases on June 13, both of whom were close contacts of previously confirmed patients from Beijing. However, no new cases have been reported in the following two days.

However, there are still many puzzles remaining to be solved regarding this wave of the epidemic.

△The Beijing Xinfadi agricultural product market, which has been sealed off, photographed by Wu Jing

Has the COVID situation in Beijing eased up?

Over the past 5 days, Beijing reported new confirmed cases as follows: 1, 6, 36, 36, and 27. Judging from the data, a downward trend has already emerged.

According to Wu Zunyou, based on the cases discovered so far, the earliest period of exposure and subsequent infection likely occurred around late May. "For patients who have already been infected, symptoms should start appearing within the next couple of days. If the number of reported cases doesn’t see significant growth over the next two days, it’s safe to say that this outbreak has essentially stabilized at its current scale."

Based on the current nucleic acid test results, the epidemic does not appear to be trending toward further expansion. According to information released at a press conference by the Beijing municipal government, nearly 200,000 people in Beijing who had visited the Xinfadi market since May 30 have already been traced and screened. Among them, on June 14, nucleic acid testing institutions conducted tests on a total of 76,499 individuals, with 59 positive results reported. Of these, 27 cases were already hospitalized at Ditan Hospital, while 21 new confirmed cases were identified, and 11 additional positive tests remain under investigation for final diagnosis.

△On June 14, Weibo user @BeijingThingsPeopleDon'tKnow posted this image: "Today at noon, Beijing's temperature reached 35°C, with surface temperatures soaring as high as 40°C" (Healthcare workers truly have it tough!).

How much greater is the risk outside of Beijing?

In addition to Beijing, confirmed cases have been reported in Liaoning, Hebei, and Sichuan—all of whom are either vendors from the Xinfadi market or close contacts.

Among these cases, Liaoning reported 2 cases on June 13, with no new cases reported afterward. On June 14, Anxin County in Xiong'an New Area, Hebei Province, reported 3 confirmed cases and 1 asymptomatic infection—all four family members, including a 6-year-old child. By June 15, an additional 4 cases were reported: 3 in Anxin County of Xiong'an New Area (2 of whom were close contacts of confirmed cases from Beijing, and 1 was a close contact of a locally confirmed case), and 1 in Dingzhou City (an operator linked to the Xinfadi market in Beijing). Meanwhile, Ya'an City in Sichuan Province reported 1 case on June 15; the patient's husband had tested positive in Beijing on June 13.

After confirmed cases were identified, stricter prevention and control measures have been implemented across various regions. For instance, Liaoning Province issued the "Notice on Effectively Addressing the Recent Risk of Imported Cases from Outside the Region and Resolutely Cutting Off the Local Transmission Chain," which calls for enhanced management of key personnel. This includes tracking and managing individuals who left Beijing’s Xinfadi wholesale market since May 30, rigorously screening and registering those arriving in or returning to Liaoning from designated high-risk areas, enforcing 14-day centralized quarantine along with two rounds of nucleic acid testing, conducting random inspections of imported aquatic products, and carrying out targeted nucleic acid tests on both the premises handling such products and the staff involved.

Hebei Province's Baoding City (Anxin County, which is under the administration of Baoding City and currently managed by the Xiong'an New Area), has activated its wartime response mechanism. Residents currently living in Baoding who have overlapping travel routes with confirmed cases from Beijing—especially those who visited Beijing’s Xinfadi Wholesale Market or JingShen Seafood Wholesale Market since May 30, as well as individuals returning to Baoding from medium- or high-risk areas—are required to immediately and proactively register and report their whereabouts. Failure to report promptly due to personal reasons, or providing inaccurate information that leads to the spread of the epidemic, will result in strict legal accountability for all related parties.

Sichuan's Ya'an has carried out close contact tracing and management, epidemiological investigations, and disinfection efforts, identifying 111 close contacts in the process.

Currently, the number of cases in the three provinces remains low and is confined to small areas. However, Baoding City in Hebei Province and Xiong'an New Area are home to many merchants from Beijing's Xinfadi market, with frequent exchanges between them—making these regions areas that require close monitoring.

How is the condition and treatment status of the confirmed patient?

According to the Beijing Daily, from June 11 to 24:00 on June 14, Beijing reported a total of 79 confirmed patients, all of whom are receiving treatment at Beijing Ditan Hospital.

On the afternoon of June 15, Wu Guoan, deputy director of Beijing Ditan Hospital, announced that among the 79 confirmed cases, one patient is in critical condition, and two are severely ill—both have already been transferred to the ICU for treatment. The remaining patients are currently classified as mild or ordinary cases.

Wu Guoan said that Beijing Ditan Hospital temporarily set up a 300-bed ward this year. After the recent cluster outbreak, Ditan Hospital expanded its capacity by opening four additional wards on top of the one confirmed-case ward and one screening ward already in operation—three of these new wards are dedicated to treating confirmed patients, while the fourth is reserved for screening purposes.

After the ward was prepared, Ditan Hospital quickly mobilized 12 doctors overnight to provide support. Ma Xianfang, director of the hospital’s medical affairs department, explained that, combined with the original 12 doctors already stationed in the ward, Ditan Hospital has now assembled a team of 24 physicians dedicated to treating patients with mild and moderate symptoms.

On the morning of June 16, Beijing Tsinghua Changgeng Hospital, Anzhen Hospital, and Youyi Hospital each dispatched 8, 3, and 2 medical team members, respectively, to support Ditan Hospital. Among them were members who had previously joined the Beijing medical aid team that traveled to Wuhan several months ago.

Human-to-human transmission or object-to-human transmission?

Has the source of the virus been identified yet?

In the early morning of June 14, Zeng Guang, former chief epidemiologist at China's Center for Disease Control and Prevention, revealed to 8:00 Health News that, among the two confirmed COVID-19 cases whose samples have already been tested, the virus did not resemble the domestically circulating strains. Preliminary analysis suggests it may be a European variant of the coronavirus. "However, determining definitively whether the virus behind Beijing's current outbreak is indeed a local strain will require results from additional sample testing," Zeng Guang added.

According to the Beijing Daily, on June 15, China's Center for Disease Control and Prevention completed the full-genome sequencing and analysis of viral samples from the relevant cases, preliminarily formulated preventive measures, and swiftly implemented decisive actions to curb the spread of the cluster outbreak in Beijing. The virus origin has already been reported, and efforts to trace its source are actively underway.

Wu Zunyou, during an interview with Bai Yansong, stated that despite Beijing having remained free of cases for nearly two months, the sudden emergence of the outbreak likely stems from the virus being brought into the city from outside Beijing—specifically, from regions beyond the capital. He explained that researchers successfully isolated the virus directly from patients' bodies and also detected it in samples taken from surfaces at the Xinfadi market. Remarkably, the viral strains isolated from both the contaminated surfaces at Xinfadi and the patients themselves were found to be genetically identical. Further comparisons with prevalent strains circulating in China as well as globally revealed that this particular strain most closely resembles the dominant variant currently spreading across Europe. However, it’s important to note that the European-dominant strain doesn’t necessarily originate exclusively from European countries—for instance, the U.S. is also experiencing a surge driven primarily by the same European lineage. Thus, while the virus likely entered Beijing from Europe, pinpointing its exact country of origin remains uncertain.

Wu Zunyou also stated that there are two possible origins for the outbreak at the Xinfadi market: one is that the virus may have entered Beijing through contaminated goods, and the other is transmission via infected individuals—especially those who are asymptomatic or exhibit only mild symptoms without even realizing it. Currently, more data are being collected to determine whether the spread occurred primarily through items or people.

Is salmon being unfairly blamed?

Previously, virus-positive samples were detected on cutting boards used for imported salmon at the Xinfadi market, prompting various regions to promptly remove salmon from their shelves.

However, on June 14, Zhang Jie, Deputy District Mayor of Fengtai District in Beijing, announced at a press conference that the Fengtai District Center for Disease Control and Prevention had collected 469 samples from the JingShen Seafood Market—specifically from salmon trading stalls and public areas—including 186 throat swab samples from individuals and 283 environmental samples. So far, all results have tested negative. Notably, the JingShen Seafood Market is the source of the imported salmon sold at the Xinfadi Agricultural Wholesale Market.

Wu Zunyou also noted that there have been some misunderstandings and misinterpretations regarding salmon. The detection of positive samples—or, more precisely, the presence of viral nucleic acids on salmon cutting boards—simply indicates contamination. This contamination could very well have originated at the Xinfadi market itself and does not necessarily mean the salmon was infected from overseas, nor does it imply that the fish were inherently contaminated from the start. Moreover, in addition to salmon, other items in the environment—including various surfaces within the same hall—have also tested positive. This clearly points to widespread contamination in the area but doesn’t provide conclusive evidence about the specific source or extent of the issue.

"Do visitors from Beijing need to quarantine?"

After the outbreak in Beijing, different regions have shown varied responses.

Regarding this, Zeng Guang told 8 PM Health News, "At this stage, we're no longer in the most severe phase of the previous outbreak. Resuming production and work is also something we need to consider—requiring more precise prevention and control measures." He emphasized that other cities shouldn't adopt a one-size-fits-all approach by mandating 14-day quarantine for people arriving from Beijing; instead, they should implement targeted防控 strategies based on Beijing's differentiated risk levels.

Wu Zunyou also believes that the epidemic in Beijing remains highly localized—confined to specific residential communities and has not spread throughout the entire city. We advocate for scientific and precise prevention and control measures, which means accurately identifying the affected areas without unnecessarily elevating Beijing's overall risk level to "medium." Consequently, business trips or tourism to Beijing should not face any restrictions. Similarly, once back in their home regions, travelers from Beijing won't need to undergo quarantine—as long as they haven't visited any medium- or high-risk areas during their stay in Beijing.

As of now, Huaxiang Subdistrict in Fengtai District, Beijing—where the Xinfadi market is located—remains a high-risk area. In addition to this, there are 22 other areas in Beijing classified as medium-risk, including Tiantan Subdistrict in Dongcheng District (upgraded on June 15), Yongdinglu and Qinglongqiao Subdistricts in Haidian District, Shibaliidian in Chaoyang District, Panggezhuang Town, Huangcun Town, Daxing Tiangongyuan Subdistrict, and Guanyinsi Subdistrict in Daxing District, as well as Nanyuan Subdistrict, Lugouqiao Township, and Dahongmen Subdistrict in Fengtai District, Baobaoshan Subdistrict in Shijingshan District, and Yuetan and Jinrongjie Subdistricts in Xicheng District. Also upgraded on June 14 were Xiluoyuan, Xincun, Taipingqiao, and Lugouqiao Subdistricts in Fengtai District, along with Linxiaolu, Gaomidian, and Xihongmen areas in Daxing District, and Changyang Town in Fangshan District.

Sources: Beijing Municipal Government Press Conference, National Health Commission website, Liaoning, Hebei, and Sichuan Provincial Health Commissions' websites, CCTV's "News 1+1," and the *Beijing Daily*.