Three new confirmed cases of COVID-19 were reported in Chengdu, Sichuan province, on Tuesday morning.

All three of the infected people had been in close contact with the two patients who were confirmed on Monday. All five have been transferred to the Public Health Clinical Center of Chengdu for quarantine and treatment, the Chengdu municipal health commission said.

A 69-year-old female resident surnamed Lu in the No 11 Group of Taiping village in Chengdu's Pidu district and her 71-year-old husband, surnamed Zhao, were diagnosed with COVID-19 on Monday. The three new patients confirmed on Tuesday morning included the couple's 20-year-old granddaughter, surnamed Zhao, who lives in a residential quarter of Chengdu's Chenghua district, and two female farmers, aged 71 and 68, in the No 11 Group of Taiping village.

As of 6 am on Tuesday, 24,598 nucleic acid test samples had been collected and 24,057 of those had been tested. The source of the virus is being verified, the commission said.

Since 9 pm on Monday, Taiping village has been listed as a medium-risk area in Chengdu. As such, residents cannot leave without special permission.

According to the education bureau of Pidu district, teachers and students in kindergartens and schools in the medium-risk area must all be tested for the coronavirus and stay quarantined at home.