On Sunday, Shanghai China received a surprise announcement that the financial hub will be divided into two halves to carry out a two-phase lockdown to carry out mass Covid-19 testing.
On Saturday the city reported a new daily record for asymptomatic infections – 2 631. Thus authorities had to intervene as quickly as possible. This number of cases also accounted for 60% of China’s total new asymptomatic cases that day.
And so, Shanghai has become the testing ground for China’s “zero-COVID” strategy as it tries to handle the listing Omicron variant.
Shanghai to expect a strict lockdown
Shanghai is divided into two districts using the Huangpu River that runs through the city as guidance. Some districts to the east of the river, and some to its west, will be in lockdown and tested between March 28 and April 1. The remaining areas will then be in lockdown and tested from April 1 to April 5. Thus, the entire process will take up to nine days.
And according to the city government, citizens can expect a strict lockdown even though not all districts are tested at once.
Public transport in all districts under lockdown will be suspended for this period of time. And unapproved vehicles will also not be allowed on any roads.
The government further added that all companies and factories will either close or worked remotely during the lockdown. However, those involved in offering public services or supplying food will still be allowed to go to work.
“The public is asked to support, understand and cooperate with the city’s epidemic prevention and control work, and participate in nucleic acid testing in an orderly manner,” the government added.