Shanghai’s 26 million people are in lockdown after tests uncovered COVID infections

SHANGHAI, April 5 (Reuters) – Chinese authorities on Tuesday extended Shanghai’s lockdown to cover the financial hub’s 26 million residents, after city-wide tests saw a rise in new COVID-19 cases. 19 to more than 13,000 amid growing public anger over the quarantine. rules.

The lockdown now covers the entire city after restrictions in the city’s western districts were extended until further notice, in what has become a major test of China’s zero-tolerance strategy to eliminate the novel coronavirus.

At least 38,000 people have been sent to Shanghai from other regions in what state media has described as the largest nationwide medical operation since Wuhan was locked down in early 2020 following the first known outbreak of coronavirus.

The city’s quarantine policy has been criticized for separating children from their parents and placing asymptomatic cases among those with symptoms. Some public health experts say it is no longer an effective strategy.

“I don’t think it’s a good idea, as more than 24 months into the pandemic we know a lot more,” said Jaya Dantas, a professor of international health at Curtin University in Australia, adding that “resource-intensive” strategies of China to combat COVID -19 needed to be reviewed.

Members of the public shared videos on social media expressing concern about the lockdown.

Sun Chunlan, China’s vice premier in charge of COVID prevention, urged the Party’s grassroots organizations to “do their best” to help residents solve their problems, such as ensuring access to medicine, food and Water.

Thousands of Shanghai residents have been locked up in rudimentary “central quarantine” facilities after testing positive, whether they are symptomatic or not.

Jane Polubotko, a Ukrainian marketing manager who is now being held in the city’s largest quarantine center, told Reuters it was unclear when they would be released.

“Nobody knows how much evidence we need to get out,” he said.

In an interview with the Communist Party newspaper People’s Daily on Saturday, Chen Erzhen, a doctor in charge of a Shanghai quarantine facility, said it was possible that China would review the guidelines and allow asymptomatic patients to stay at home, especially if the number of cases continues. mount.

“The biggest thing is the issue of personal compliance,” he said.

INCREASE IN CASES

Shanghai imposed tough restrictions last week as authorities struggled to contain what has become the city’s largest COVID-19 outbreak, having originally taken a more gradual approach.

“Currently, epidemic prevention and control in Shanghai is at the most difficult and critical stage,” Wu Qianyu, an official with the municipal health commission, said at a briefing on Tuesday. “We must adhere to the general policy of dynamic settlement without hesitation, without hesitation.”

Shanghai reported a record 13,086 new asymptomatic coronavirus cases on April 4, officials said on its WeChat channel, up from 8,581 a day earlier, after a city-wide testing program sampled more than 25 million. of people in 24 hours.

The government said it had collected 25.7 million samples in 2.4 million test tubes on Monday, with nearly 80% of the total tested by Tuesday morning. Any positive results are followed up at the individual level.

The proportion of asymptomatic cases is much higher in Shanghai than in the rest of the world, which is attributed to a screening process that catches infected people before they get sick. However, experts said it did not explain why symptomatic cases fell to 268 on Monday from 425 the day before.

Analysts outside of China warn about the economic costs of the campaign to curb contagion.

“What is most striking in Shanghai is the difficulty authorities are having managing logistics, particularly conditions at centralized quarantine facilities,” said Michael Hirson, a China analyst at consultancy Eurasia Group.

“Given that Shanghai has a highly capable government, the current problems pose a warning to local governments in China where capacity is not that high and major outbreaks could stretch resources to the limit.”

Reporting by David Stanway and Brenda Goh; Edited by Richard Pullin and Stephen Coates

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