Beijing shuts down market, reverses some reopening plans after more than 50 coronavirus cases found

Beijing authorities swiftly shut down the largest wholesale food market in the Chinese capital Saturday, as well as residential communities in the surrounding area, after more than 53 people tested positive for the coronavirus in the city.

Nearly every infected person had worked or shopped at the Xinfadi market, where the virus was reportedly detected on cutting boards for imported salmon. Of the 53 cases, 46 — all market employees — were asymptomatic at the time of diagnosis.

The outbreak comes more than 50 days since Beijing saw its last reported local coronavirus case, and the city had slowly been returning to normal. Now, Beijing is tightening traffic controls into and out of the city, paramilitary police reportedly stand guard outside the market, and plans to reopen primary schools and hold some athletic and cultural events have been reversed. Officials said they will set up temporary open-air trading posts so fruit and vegetables remain available.

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

The news out of Beijing highlights the difficulty of suppressing the virus. Similarly, in Oregon, Gov. Kate Brown (D) temporarily paused the state's reopening efforts Friday after it recorded the highest daily number of new infections since the pandemic began. Experts believe the virus could eventually make a resurgence in places where it has dwindled, although Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said a massive second wave is not "inevitable" if "you approach it the proper way." Read more at The New York Times and The Associate Press.