+ A
A -
dpa
Beijing
Chinese health officials reported performing more than 8 million coronavirus tests in the key port city of Shanghai, which is in the midst of a lockdown as China tries to snuff out the latest outbreak of the disease.
About 17,000 testing personnel are out in force to screen the city’s 26 million inhabitants, according to the state-run Xinhua news agency. The tests logged 96 new cases of people suffering from Covid-19 on Monday, as well as 4,381 asymptomatic cases.
Nationwide, health officials reported 1,228 cases that had developed into full-blown Covid-19 incidents and 5,658 cases without symptoms.
The surprise lockdown was imposed on the city on Monday, after denials that no such tactics would be needed in the city. Every resident will now be tested twice. Anyone who tests positive will be put into quarantine, with facilities set up in gymnasiums and exhibition centres to house them all.
The lockdown has divided the city in two, with residents of the southern and eastern parts restricted for the first four days. On Friday, it will be the turn of residents of the city’s older quarters, west of the Huangpu River.
China is currently suffering its worst coronavirus outbreak in two years, thanks to the arrival of the Omicron variant. The numbers are low, compared to many other countries. But China is trying to stamp out all cases to achieve its zero-Covid policy, which means an outsized reaction.
That could mean a change in daily life in China, which has been able to operate relatively normally during the pandemic by relying, so far, on limited lockdowns and testing policies.
Beijing
Chinese health officials reported performing more than 8 million coronavirus tests in the key port city of Shanghai, which is in the midst of a lockdown as China tries to snuff out the latest outbreak of the disease.
About 17,000 testing personnel are out in force to screen the city’s 26 million inhabitants, according to the state-run Xinhua news agency. The tests logged 96 new cases of people suffering from Covid-19 on Monday, as well as 4,381 asymptomatic cases.
Nationwide, health officials reported 1,228 cases that had developed into full-blown Covid-19 incidents and 5,658 cases without symptoms.
The surprise lockdown was imposed on the city on Monday, after denials that no such tactics would be needed in the city. Every resident will now be tested twice. Anyone who tests positive will be put into quarantine, with facilities set up in gymnasiums and exhibition centres to house them all.
The lockdown has divided the city in two, with residents of the southern and eastern parts restricted for the first four days. On Friday, it will be the turn of residents of the city’s older quarters, west of the Huangpu River.
China is currently suffering its worst coronavirus outbreak in two years, thanks to the arrival of the Omicron variant. The numbers are low, compared to many other countries. But China is trying to stamp out all cases to achieve its zero-Covid policy, which means an outsized reaction.
That could mean a change in daily life in China, which has been able to operate relatively normally during the pandemic by relying, so far, on limited lockdowns and testing policies.
