New imported coronavirus infections hit a record of 21 in the Chinese capital of Beijing, data showed on Thursday, piling pressure on authorities to screen out infected passengers and isolate suspected cases.
But there were no new domestic transmissions for the first day since the virus took hold late last year in Wuhan, capital of the central province of Hubei.
China’s recent efforts to fight the epidemic have increasingly focused on inbound travellers, as the virus spread rapidly worldwide, raising the prospect of a second wave of infections from overseas.
“A single spark can start a prairie fire,” state-backed China Daily wrote in an editorial.
On Wednesday, Beijing recorded 21 new infections from abroad, mostly in travellers from Britain and Spain, for the bulk of the mainland’s 34 new imported cases.
