China confirms 182 new cases with 175 in Xi’an
Print Edition
HUNDREDS of thousands of more people were confined to their homes in northern China yesterday as the country battled its worst COVID-19 surge in 21 months.
The Chinese mainland reported 182 new locally transmitted COVID-19 cases on Monday, the National Health Commission said yesterday.
Of the new local cases, 180 were reported in Shaanxi, and one each in Zhejiang and Yunnan provinces.
Shaanxi’s capital Xi’an reported 175 symptomatic cases, up from the previous day’s 150.
The surge has prompted authorities to impose what they have called the “strictest” possible curbs in Xi’an, whose 13 million residents are entering the sixth day of home confinement.
Some residents in Xi’an were anxious to know when they could next stock up on daily necessities such as vegetables, as officials had barred people from going out to shop during a new round of mass testing that started on Monday.
Officials had said shopping could resume for people in less risky areas once test results came back negative, but did not say exactly when the suspension would be lifted.
Before the restriction, each household had been allowed to send only one person out to shop for essentials every two days.
“It feels like a long time,” said a 22-year-old resident surnamed Jin.
“The fact that I haven’t yet been told when I could shop again makes me a bit anxious,” Jin, who ran out of fresh greens yesterday and couldn’t make orders online, said.
Authorities have said that supplies remain stable as they maintain strict controls on movement into and out of Xi’an.
A resident surnamed Wei said staff at her compound collected residents’ online orders at the entrance and delivered them to her door in person.
“I haven’t experienced a lack of supplies,” she said. “The community notified us of the lockdown before it happened, so I managed to stock up.”
Since last week, Xi’an residents have not been allowed to leave the city without clearance from their employer or authorities.
Zhang Boli, who advised the Chinese government in formulating early COVID-19 response and treatment strategies, told state media earlier this month that Xi’an may contain the outbreak by around mid-January.
Nearby cities have also logged cases linked to the flare-up, with Yan’an, about 300 kilometers from Xi’an, shuttering businesses and ordering hundreds of thousands of people in one district to stay indoors yesterday.
More than 800 coronavirus cases have been recorded in Xi’an since December 9, with the youngest case a 38-day-old infant.
Xi’an has set up over 4,400 sampling sites and deployed more than 100,000 people to handle the latest round of testing, according to state broadcaster China Central Television.
Students have also been banned from leaving university dormitories unless necessary, CCTV reported.
No Omicron infections have been announced yet from the 810 confirmed cases in Xi’an. China has reported only a handful of Omicron infections among international travelers and in its south.
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