The Chinese city of Wuhan, ground zero of the coronavirus pandemic, conducted 887,321 nucleic acid tests for COVID-19 on Wednesday, up from 856,128 tests the previous day, according to the local health authority.
No confirmed cases of COVID-19 with symptoms were found during Wednesday’s testing period; however, 28 new asymptomatic carriers were identified, according to daily reports published by the Wuhan Municipal Health Commission.
Last week, the Wuhan Municipal Health Commission announced a citywide campaign to test the entire population of 11 million residents for COVID-19 in an effort to search for asymptomatic carriers of the virus after a cluster of new cases emerged for the first time since the city had lifted its strict lockdown on April 8. The number of nucleic acid tests conducted in the city daily has rapidly increased since then.
The Wuhan Municipal Health Commission said it has now conducted over 3 million nucleic acid tests since May 12.
Although recommended, participation in the testing campaign is voluntary. Residents who were previously tested do not need to take part. It is not recommended to test children under the age of 6, according to the Wuhan Municipal Health Commission’s website.
