In a striking development in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, China reported no new coronavirus deaths on Tuesday, for the first time since the outbreak of the coronavirus in the country.
China’s National Health Commission said that it also recorded a decline in the new cases, it stood 32 on Tuesday as compared 39 on Monday.
The announcement comes as the international health experts suspect that it is underreporting the figures. As of Monday, a total of 3,331 coronavirus deaths recorded in China, and nearly 81,40 have been infected. According to the authorities, the new cases are related to overseas travel, not the local transmission.
However, the authorities are concerned that the second wave of infections could be brought in by overseas travels. China has already shut its borders for foreigners, including the people who have residence permits and visas.
The international flights have been restricted, local and overseas airlines are only allowed one flight per week. And the flights must not be more than 75% full.
More:
- China Pauses for three minutes to Mourn Coronavirus Victims
- The US Surpasses China with most COVID-19 Confirmed Cases
On Wednesday, Wuhan is expected to allow the residents to leave the city for the first time since the COVID-19 broke out in the city and the authorities-imposed lockdown. China is trying to control the situation with the use of a health app.
The authorities said that the people who will have green code on their widely used health apps would be allowed to travel outside. Though, people living in “epidemic free” areas can leave for the city for two hours.
the emergence of asymptomatic cases
Wuhan’s authorities have revoked the “epidemic free’ status for many regions because of the emergence of asymptomatic cases. These are the cases in which the person is carrying the virus but is experiencing no symptoms, but they can pass on the virus.
China first began reporting the asymptomatic cases in the beginning in April. According to the official numbers, more than 1,033 asymptomatic patients are under medical observation. More than 30 new asymptomatic cases were reported on Monday. Of the new cases, 18 were from the Chinese Hubei province.
Meanwhile, the global death toll has surged to 70,000 as the coronavirus ravages many countries in Europe and the US.
The United States has the highest number of confirmed cases; more than 367,000 people have been infected so far. After the fourth consecutive day of decline in daily deaths in Spain, it saw a slight rise in the daily deaths on Tuesday.