BEIJING, (Reuters) – A rapidly growing COVID-19 cluster has prompted Dalian’s northeastern port to restrict outbound travel and to close some cultural venues. This was after national authorities told it to do so more quickly.

Dalian recorded 52 local transmitted infections and confirmed symptoms Thursday. It was more than twice the daily number of cases reported in any Chinese city since mid-October.

Between Oct. 17th and November 11th, 1,149 cases of local cholera were reported in China. The number of local cases is small compared to other outbreaks in China, but the authorities are working hard to contain the situation. Beijing has not yet changed its policy on zero tolerance.

According to the National Health Commission, “Various measures need to be fastened, and their quality should improved to bring the outbreak under control quickly and minimise its impact on the manufacturing industry and public life,” it said Thursday. It cited a meeting that was chaired at Dalian by the director of the commission.

A local transport official stated that the average number of tourists leaving Dalian dropped to 918 people per day, down 96.5%, following the imposition of restrictions on public transportation and warning residents not to leave Dalian.

The city demanded that kindergartens, primary, and high schools stop offline classes, as well as closing a few libraries and museums. A second round of mass testing was initiated across the city.

Dalian urged its citizens to stay at home on Friday,

According to state-backed newspaper Global Times, Dalian is a major port for shipping seafood and fruit shipments. It also orders all frozen food import businesses to cease operations.

On November 11, China reported that there had been 98,099 COVID-19-positive patients in mainland China. This includes both domestic and international cases. At 4,636 deaths, the total number of victims remained constant.