• The overall confirmed cases on the Chinese mainland had reached 40,171 by the end of February 9. A total of 908 people had died of novel coronavirus infection, and altogether 3,281 people had been discharged from hospital after recovery.

• As workers across China return from the Spring Festival travel rush, the Ministry of Commerce will step up efforts to relocate and replenish food and critical supplies in major cities.

• As of Sunday midnight, Chongqing had reported a total of 468 confirmed cases with 34 severe cases, 22 critical cases, two deaths, and 51 discharged patients.

• The high risk of group meals cannot be ignored in Chongqing, concluded an analysis of local reported confirmed cases.

A farmer (L) and a volunteer are carrying vegetables for the food supply of Chongqing people. (Photo by Tang Yi)

Chongqing- As of 24:00 local time on February 9, Chongqing had reported a total of 468 confirmed cases of novel coronavirus pneumonia (NCP), according to the Chongqing Municipal Health Commission Monday. There are 34 severe cases, 22 critical cases, two deaths, and 51 discharged patients.

A total of 15,668 people who had close contacts with NCP patients have been traced, 9,114 people have been released from medical observation, and 6,554 people are under medical observation.

Be aware of the high risk of group meals

According to Sunday’s press conference on epidemic prevention and control, the high risk of group meals cannot be ignored, as experts analyzed the occupational classification of previous cases and found that the cumulative number of cases in the catering industry has gradually increased, accounting for 10.46% of the total number.

Experts emphasized that among the newly reported confirmed cases, the number of local cases accounted for a relatively high proportion.  From the geographical point of view, the recently reported confirmed cases in Wanzhou District and other places are mainly second- and third-generation cases infected by imported cases, and the downtown area and western Chongqing districts mainly community-infected ones.  Therefore, it is particularly important to strengthen community checks and close contact tracing and isolation to contain the spread of the epidemic. 

With the gradual resumption of work and production, human mobility increases, and the pressure on epidemic prevention and control further will also increase.  People in Chongqing need to stay at home as possible and do good self-protection. Wear a mask when going outside, avoid crowds, and have no group meals or gatherings.

In addition, people of all ages are susceptible to the virus. The community adopting closed-off management does not allow visitors in and out in principle. All personnel must check body temperatures of those entering the community, and each community has an independent waste mask collection bucket.

China’s National Health Commission (NHC) said Monday that the overall confirmed cases on the Chinese mainland had reached 40,171 by the end of Sunday, noting that a total of 908 people had died of the disease and that altogether 3,281 people had been discharged from hospital after recovery. By the end of Sunday, 36 confirmed cases, including one death had been reported in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR), 10 confirmed cases in the Macao SAR, and 18 in Taiwan. One patient in Macao and one in Taiwan haven discharged from hospital after recovery.

Chinese health authorities have dispatched a total of 11,921 medical personnel from across the country to Hubei Province to aid the fight against the novel coronavirus pneumonia, according to NHC on Sunday.

As workers across China return from the Spring Festival travel rush, the Ministry of Commerce will step up efforts to relocate and replenish food and supplies in major cities, said an official during a press conference on Sunday.