The central government team on coronavirus prevention and control issued a report on COVID-19 situation in northeast China's Heilongjiang Province and called for proper implementation of coronavirus prevention in Heilongjiang in wake of cluster cases and infections inside hospitals.

The official report issued on Thursday fiercely criticized the provincial capital of Harbin and its border city of Mudanjiang for underestimating the current situation and risk, and for failing on proper prevention and control measures including screening and shunting of fever patients, quarantine management, as well as timely nucleic acid testing for patients.

The northeastern Chinese province has been under growing pressure from imported cases and increasing domestic infections, mainly related to imported ones.

Since April, cluster cases have emerged in both Harbin and Mudanjiang cities and the sources were traced back to persons returning from overseas.

They also led to infections of several medical workers due to the poor implementation of prevention measures and delayed diagnoses or even misdiagnosis at hospitals.

Heilongjiang has so far recorded a total of 944 confirmed cases, over 40 percent of which, or 386 cases, were imported.