Beijing continues hospital prep as cases rise

Beijing had 23 makeshift hospitals in operation by Tuesday for the treatment of COVID-19 infections during the ongoing outbreak, senior officials said at a news conference on Tuesday.

Those hospitals have 23,892 beds in total and now hold 19,031 infected people, meaning a percentage of beds occupied of 79.7 percent, said Wang Xiao'e, spokeswoman of the city's health commission.

"The construction of the makeshift hospitals has strictly followed national standards," Wang said. "The hospitals are equipped with water, power, as well as other facilities including toilets, showers and ventilation. The city government will continue to improve the management of the makeshift hospitals to better serve the infected."

On Monday, Beijing reported 957 new locally transmitted COVID-19 cases and 3,429 asymptomatic carriers.

Beijing reported 2,126 new infections between midnight and 3pm on Tuesday, among whom 1,337 are asymptomatic carriers, according to Liu Xiaofeng, deputy director of the Beijing Center for Disease Prevention and Control.

Of those infections, 1,935 were found in people already under quarantine and the remaining 191 were detected at the community level.