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Coronavirus pandemic
ChinaPolitics

Covid-19 in China: Shenzhen residents fear tighter controls on the way as authorities pledge to do all they can to stop new outbreak

  • The city said it would ‘adopt all measures’ to stop the spread after recording 22 cases on Wednesday
  • Earlier this year public transport was halted in the city and residents largely forced to stay at home and undergo mass tests under its ‘slow-living’ policy

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People queue for nucleic acid testing at a temporary Covid-19 testing site in Shenzhen. Photo: Anadolu Agency via Getty Images
Eunice Yang
Residents of the southern Chinese tech hub Shenzhen have reacted with a mixture of weary resignation and concern after the authorities pledged to do all they could to stop a new outbreak of Covid-19.

The city of nearly 18 million residents reported 22 new locally transmitted cases for Wednesday, a slow but steady increase from the single-digit caseload reported earlier this month.

Although the outbreak is small by both domestic and global standards, the city’s leaders have attached high importance to stamping it out in line with the country’s zero-Covid policies.

“We must mobilise all resources and adopt all measures to quickly eliminate the risk of a community spread in key areas, resolutely cut transmission chains and contain the outbreak as quickly as possible,” Meng Fanli, the city’s party chief, told a Covid-19 control meeting on Wednesday.

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Hundreds in hazmat suits moved to quarantine facilities under China’s strict zero-Covid policy

Hundreds in hazmat suits moved to quarantine facilities under China’s strict zero-Covid policy

Nationwide, China has recorded hundreds of cases in recent days, with Gansu and Guangxi being the worst affected areas.

On Wednesday, 826 new infections were reported across 21 provinces but He Qinghua, an official with the National Health Commission, said the outbreaks remained at a low level and would have a “limited impact” because it was possible to contain outbreaks quickly and effectively.

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