Beijing reports 50 new symptomatic COVID cases

STORY: The daily caseload has remained in the dozens rather than exploding like in Shanghai and most other major cities around the world.

To keep the situation stable, many city authorities deploy local border controls, frequent mass testing and vigilantly monitor and isolate any new infections, including through individual building lockdowns.

Freelance professional Fan Xiaoze was allowed to leave the neighborhood for the first time in a month. "It’s good to be able to take a walk and relax a bit. But we still aren’t allowed to go far away. We can only be around this area.”

The city also reported 12 asymptomatic cases of COVID for May 19, up from five a day earlier.