Lanzhou reports 6 new cases, under lockdown
Print Edition
CHINA placed a city of four million under lockdown yesterday in a bid to stamp out a domestic coronavirus spike, with residents told not to leave home except in emergencies.
Yesterday’s fresh restrictions came as China reported 29 new domestic infections, including six cases in Lanzhou, the provincial capital of northwestern province Gansu.
Residents of Lanzhou will be required to stay at home, authorities said in a statement.
Officials added the “entry and exit of residents” would be strictly controlled and limited to essential supplies or medical treatment.
Bus and taxi services had already been suspended in the city, and state media said yesterday that Lanzhou station had suspended more than 70 trains, including key routes to major cities like Beijing and Xi’an.
Flights to Lanzhou were also being canceled, with a Southern Airlines representative telling AFP that all their flights from Beijing’s Daxing airport to Lanzhou were canceled due to public safety, without any date given to resume.
China’s latest outbreak has been linked to the contagious Delta variant, with the tally from the latest outbreak hitting 198 cases since October 17.
Health officials have warned that more infections may emerge as testing is ramped up in the coming days to fight the outbreak.
Strict stay-at-home orders have already been imposed on tens of thousands of people in northern China. Mass testing is underway in 11 provinces and authorities have suspended inter-provincial tour groups.
While the country’s case numbers are extremely low compared with elsewhere in the world, authorities are determined to stamp out the latest outbreak with the Winter Olympics just over 100 days away.
Those deemed to have failed in controlling COVID-19 are often dismissed from their posts or punished.
Xinhua news agency reported yesterday that the party secretary of Ejin Banner in the northern Inner Mongolia region had been sacked “due to poor performance and implementation in epidemic prevention and control.”
The city has also been hit by the latest wave which has mostly spread in northern areas in China. Six other officials were punished for their “slack response” to the latest flare-up, and a local police bureau deputy director was removed from the position.
Beijing police have launched three criminal investigations into alleged COVID-19 safety breaches, deputy director of the city’s public security bureau said on Sunday.
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