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Covid in China: Another 8 die in Shanghai as lockdown continues
Apart from Shanghai, 17 other provincial-level regions on the mainland saw new local Covid-19 cases, including 95 in the northeastern province of Jilin, and one in Beijing.
BEIJING: China’s financial hub Shanghai will continue implementing strict Covid-19 restrictions, local authorities said on Thursday as the city reported eight more deaths and 15,861 new local asymptomatic coronavirus including 2,634 symptomatic infections for Wednesday.
Apart from Shanghai, 17 other provincial-level regions on the mainland saw new local Covid-19 cases, including 95 in the northeastern province of Jilin, and one in Beijing.
The average age of the eight who died on Wednesday was above 77 years, city authorities said, adding that the patients suffered from pre-existing health issues such as malignant tumours and high blood pressure.
The death toll from the ongoing outbreak stands at 25, all reported in the last four days, a surprisingly low number given that the city has logged over 200,000 cases since March.
Throughout Shanghai’s lockdown - some localities have been shut down since last month - complaints have flooded China’s Twitter-like social media platform Weibo, giving a glimpse of discontent among the city’s some 25 million residents.
Complaints have been about lack of supplies and medicines, and the treatment of the elderly, some of whom have been taken to centralised quarantine zones against their wish.
Though officials did announce the lifting of some curbs, some residents complained online about discrepancies between policy and enforcement as construction workers came to reinforce barriers around their apartment buildings, according to AFP.
The central district of Jingan, for example, on Thursday morning said it would no longer allow residents out of their housing compounds citing risks of large gatherings.
“Supermarkets would remain shut to shoppers, vehicles would not be allowed on roads without approval, and only one person from each household would be allowed to leave home each day in some towns in Chongming,” deputy governor Zhang Zhitong said.
“For those in prevention areas, we have to continue to ensure that they don’t become ‘free to fly’ areas,” he was quoted as saying by Reuters, referring to neighbourhoods where residents are allowed to leave their housing compounds.
