Beijing introduced new Covid-19 curbs on Saturday to stamp out a "serious" outbreak as the Chinese capital maintains its strict zero-tolerance policy, with less than 100 days before it hosts the Winter Olympics.
China's leading epidemiologist Zhong Nanshan said Saturday that authorities could contain a nationwide outbreak within a month — but also warned the "pandemic cannot be eradicated within a short period of time".
The outbreak has hit at least 14 of China's provinces and millions have been tested in the past week.
The situation is "serious and complex" and the epidemic "is still developing rapidly", Mi Feng, spokesperson for the National Health Commission, told a press conference Saturday.
In Beijing, authorities ordered all cinemas closed until November 14 in the capital's Xicheng district, which lies west of Tiananmen Square and is home to over a million people.
China announced 59 locally transmitted virus cases Saturday — the highest since mid-September — including two cases in Beijing linked to a tourist group infected in the north of the country.
While the number is low compared to daily case counts in other countries, authorities are pushing Beijing to contain the virus ahead of the Games, which begin on February 4.
The city — which hosted the Summer Olympics in 2008 — will become the first to host both events.
The new centre of the outbreak is 650 kilometres from Beijing, in the city of Erenhot, on the border with Mongolia.
Some six million Chinese people in cities where the virus has been detected are now under travel restrictions.
The country's nationwide train operator will suspend or limit routes in affected areas, state news agency Xinhua reported Saturday.
Entry into numerous regions is now conditional on a negative test result — particularly for those coming from affected areas.
Friday saw around half of flights leaving Beijing's capital cancelled, with authorities urging people not to leave the city unless absolutely necessary. They also asked Beijingers to postpone their weddings.
Shanghai Disneyland closed over single Covid case
Beijing (AFP) Nov 1, 2021 –
Shanghai Disneyland was closed Monday over a single coronavirus case, as Chinese authorities pressed ahead with their zero-infection strategy ahead of the Winter Olympics.
China had reduced most domestic cases to a trickle throughout the pandemic, but a flare-up in recent weeks has tested Beijing's determination to eliminate Covid-19 as much of the rest of the world opens up.
There were 92 new cases reported Monday — the highest since mid-September.
Shanghai Disneyland closed after a woman who visited the park tested positive after returning home to a neighbouring province, state media said.
Disneyland said it would be remain shut for at least Monday and Tuesday "to follow the requirement(s) of pandemic prevention and control".
The reopening date was yet to be confirmed, it added.
The park began barring new visitors from entering on Sunday, with everyone in the park required to take a Covid-19 test before leaving.
Nearly 34,000 people had been tested by Monday morning, the city government said.
All tests came back negative, it said, but added that those affected must stay away from work or school for at least two days and undergo further testing.
State media footage showed scores of health workers in hazmat suits inside Disneyland, as masked visitors waited underneath fireworks at the park's landmark castle.
The closure comes after Beijing's newly opened Universal Studios said Saturday that close contacts of infected people had been found among the previous weekend's visitors.
All staff at the theme park — which entered a "state of emergency prevention" on Friday — have tested negative and no trace of the virus had been detected on the site, the park added.
Chinese authorities have shown no sign of relenting on their strict zero-Covid policy.
Beijing is due to host the Winter Olympics in under 100 days, and authorities have said eradicating the virus is their biggest challenge in the run-up.
About six million people are under lockdown orders, mostly in northern parts of China.
Mi Feng, spokesperson for the National Health Commission, said at a press conference Saturday that authorities would continue to "strictly prohibit people in locked-down communities from leaving their homes".
Beijing introduced new curbs on Saturday, including closing all cinemas in one western district.
Flights, weddings cancelled as China tackles Covid outbreak
Beijing (AFP) Oct 29, 2021 –
Beijing officials on Friday told residents to postpone weddings and keep funeral ceremonies short, as disease controls across China were tightened just months before the Winter Olympics kicks off in the capital.
The world's most populous nation has reduced infection numbers to a trickle since its initial epidemic last spring thanks to a zero-tolerance approach of border closures, targeted lockdowns and long quarantine periods.
But China is now grappling with flare-ups in a dozen regions linked to tourists, spurring officials to order millions to stay home, restrict inter-provincial travel and ramp up testing.
Case numbers remain far lower than in most countries, with 48 new domestic infections on Friday bringing the tally to fewer than 250 in the past week.
But authorities are not taking any chances, with tens of thousands of people in Beijing — which will host the Winter Olympics in February — under lockdown after a handful of cases were detected.
Residents should "postpone weddings, keep funerals brief, don't organise banquets, and reduce unnecessary gatherings", deputy chief of the city's disease control centre Pang Xinghuo said at a Friday press conference.
Tourist spots will further limit capacity, while the newly opened Universal Studios resort will enter a "state of emergency epidemic prevention", said Beijing's deputy publicity chief Xu Hejian, without giving further details.
Queues stretched down the roads outside Beijing's medical centres as people sought to comply with newly enhanced Covid controls.
Software developer Tu Anling, 24, told AFP she needed a test before being allowed to board a train to Nanjing, a city 1,000 kilometres (620 miles) to the south.
"I initially arranged to meet friends here (in Beijing), but the recent outbreak made many suddenly say they're not coming," she said.
Many regions are demanding passengers show a negative test before entering, especially those from cities that have recently reported cases.
Others told AFP they needed tests to sit academic or professional exams.
With Beijing officials keeping a wary eye on outbreaks in other parts of China, around half of all flights at the capital's two main airports were cancelled Friday, according to Chinese tracking platform Feichangzhun.
On Thursday rail authorities ordered two Beijing-bound high-speed trains to stop and sent over 450 passengers to be tested after staff members were identified as close contacts of infected people.
Fearful of outbreaks, a number of other cities have also strengthened Covid rules.
Authorities in Harbin — the capital of the northeastern Heilongjiang province — warned 10 million residents against outbound travel and grounded a third of flights at the city's airport.
About six million people are under lockdown across China including around four million in the northwestern city of Lanzhou and the Inner Mongolian county of Ejin, where around 35,000 people live.
