A medical worker collects a swab sample from a girl at a community in Qiaoxi District of Shijiazhuang, capital of north China's Hebei province, Jan 6, 2021. (MU YU / XINHUA)

SHIJIAZHUANG - North China's Hebei province reported 14 new COVID-19 infections as its capital Shijiazhuang will be locked down for seven days to curb the spread of the virus.

Apart from the 14 new locally-transmitted confirmed COVID-19 cases, Hebei also reported 16 asymptomatic cases on Friday, the provincial health commission said Saturday.

All cases were identified in the provincial capital Shijiazhuang.

READ MORE: Hebei sees 33 new virus cases, appoints acting mayor in capital

A total of 354 people have tested positive for COVID-19 in the citywide nucleic acid testing in Shijiazhuang, authorities said on Saturday.

Residents in Shijiazhuang and Xingtai have been advised against non-essential outbound trips, and long-distance passenger vehicles in the two cities have also been suspended

From Jan.6 to 8, over 10.25 million residents in the city were tested for COVID-19, said Ma Yujun, acting mayor of Shijiazhuang, at a press conference. 

Public transportation, including buses, subways and taxis, has been suspended indefinitely in the city, local authorities.

Shijiazhuang citizens are urged to stay at home after completing the nucleic acid testing, said the municipal COVID-19 prevention and control headquarters on Friday. 

The worst-hit Gaocheng district in Shijiazhuang has been classified as a high-risk area for COVID-19, and another 17 areas in Shijiazhuang and Xingtai have been classified as medium-risk areas as of Friday.

ALSO READ: More decisive, stricter measures urged to contain Hebei outbreak

Residents in Shijiazhuang and Xingtai have been advised against non-essential outbound trips, and long-distance passenger vehicles in the two cities have also been suspended.  

Vice-premier inspects Hebei

Following the important instruction of Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, Chinese Vice-Premier Sun Chunlan has inspected Hebei, demanding efforts to curb the recently emerged spread of COVID-19 in the province as soon as possible.

A police officer stands guard at an entrance to the expressway in Shijiazhuang, capital of north China's Hebei province, Jan 7, 2021. (YANG SHIYAO/XINHUA)

Sun made the inspection tour from Wednesday to Friday, paying visits to a village in the province's capital city of Shijiazhuang, a quarantine site, a local community, an epidemic control center, and hospitals to learn about local conditions.

Sun also had meetings with local governments and experts, calling for resolute measures to curb the spread of the outbreak.

The cluster infections in Hebei developed fast, with 85.5 percent of the infected from rural areas and many of them are the aged, according to officials.

ALSO READ: Driver from Hebei proud to have taken tracks through history

Sun demanded local Party committees and governments to act swiftly and strengthen their efforts in personnel monitoring, nucleic acid testing, patient admission and treating, source tracing, and material support.  

A total of 16 new imported cases were reported, including seven in Shanghai, four in Liaoning, two in Guangdong, and one each in Jiangsu, Fujian, and Shandong.

33 new cases on mainland

The Chinese mainland on Friday reported 33 newly confirmed COVID-19 cases, of whom 17 were locally transmitted, the National Health Commission said Saturday.

Fourteen locally transmitted cases were reported in Hebei province and three in northeastern Liaoning, the commission said in its daily report.

A total of 16 new imported cases were reported, including seven in Shanghai, four in Liaoning, two in Guangdong, and one each in Jiangsu, Fujian, and Shandong.

One new suspected case arriving from outside the mainland was reported in Shanghai, and no new deaths related to COVID-19 were reported, said the commission, adding that 19 COVID-19 patients were discharged from hospitals following recovery on Friday.

By the end of Friday, a total of 4,391 imported cases had been reported on the mainland. Among them, 4,110 had been discharged from hospitals following recovery, and 281 remained hospitalized. No deaths had been reported among the imported cases.

The total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases on the mainland reached 87,364 by Friday, including 535 patients still receiving treatment, 16 of whom were in severe conditions.

A total of 82,195 patients had been discharged following recovery on the mainland, and 4,634 had died as a result of the virus, according to the commission.

There was one suspected COVID-19 case on the mainland on Friday, and 25,414 close contacts remained under medical observation.

Friday saw 38 asymptomatic cases newly reported, of whom 21 arrived from outside the mainland. On the same day, one imported asymptomatic case was re-categorized as confirmed case.

A total of 483 asymptomatic cases were under medical observation, of whom 253 arrived from outside the mainland.