As authorities try to complete testing for COVID-19, hot days make task difficult

People lining up for novel coronavirus tests and medical workers in personal protective equipment taking throat swabs under the blazing sun have become common scenes around Beijing after a new cluster of COVID-19 cases emerged.

The majority of new infections emanated from the Xinfadi wholesale food market in Fengtai district, in the city's southwest. Before the new cases, the capital had gone 56 days without any locally transmitted cases of coronavirus.

To prevent a second wave of the outbreak, Beijing authorities required those who had visited the market since May 30 to be tested for the virus.

Most of the new cases have been traced back to Xinfadi, Beijing's largest fresh food market.