Dalian reports no new virus cases since Feb 17

Dalian in Northeast China's Liaoning province has taken strict management over people entering the city since Sunday, according to the city's epidemic prevention and control office.

According to the new policy, people who come or return to Dalian from outside Liaoning province in China and those from neighboring countries should be under home quarantine or centralized isolation for 14 days from the date of arrival, and provide information including travel history, place of residence, health condition and contact information.

"After resuming production, China reported several confirmed COVID-19 cases in office and factory clusters," said Zhao Zuowei, director of the Dalian Health Commission, on Monday. "And reported cases in neighboring Japan and South Korea have steadily increased in recent days."

Dalian is located on the southernmost tip of the Liaodong peninsula, and is surrounded by Bohai Bay and the Yellow Sea on three sides, facing the Republic of Korea, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, and Japan across the sea.

But Zhao added migrant workers who have health certificates issued by their local health authorities and received point-to-point transport service don't need to observe the 14-day home isolation.

Zhao said the situation for epidemic prevention and control is still severe and complicated, even though Liaoning province has adjusted the emergency response level of epidemic prevention and control from the top level to the third level. Dalian has reported no new cases since Feb 17.

As of Monday, Dalian has reported 19 confirmed cases and 15 suspected cases of novel coronavirus pneumonia, including 11 cases that were discharged from the hospital. Released from isolation for medical observation are 488 of the 507 people who were in close contact with patients.

So far, no foreigners in Dalian have been infected with NCP, said Li Baoguang, director of the city's foreign affairs office at the press conference on Monday.

Dalian now has about 3,000 foreign-invested enterprises, and 12,000 permanent foreigners, including more than 1,300 overseas teachers and students staying in Dalian during winter vacation, Li added.