More than 5 million people in the city of Guangzhou, in southern China, have entered quarantine, as part of the closure decisions announced by the authorities to cope with the outbreak of the Corona virus, which is spreading, and to avoid resorting to a global closure.
The city, with a population of 19 million, has turned into a hotbed of the virus outbreak in China, with more than 1,000 new cases recorded for five consecutive days. Percentages that remain high for the country, which pursues a “zero Covid” policy.
With the rest of the world starting to turn the page on Corona, China still insists on using abrupt closures, mass testing and quarantine to clear the infection as soon as it appears, according to a network report. CNN.
The current wave of spread, the worst since the outbreak in a city, which is a major economic center of China and a global industrial center.
Most of the recorded cases were concentrated in the sprawling city of Guangzhou in the Haizhou District, a residential metropolitan area of about 1.8 million people.
Haizhou was closed on Saturday, residents were told not to leave their homes unless absolutely necessary, and all public transport – from buses to the subway – was suspended. Although the closure was initially supposed to last three days, it was extended to Friday.
For their part, the inhabitants of Liwan, an old quarter to the west of the city, have woken up with orders to stay indoors if not strictly necessary to go out. Area colleges and universities have been asked to close their campuses. Eating in restaurants has been banned and businesses have been ordered to close, except for those providing essential supplies.
On Wednesday afternoon, the third district, the remote Panyu, announced a closure that will last until Sunday. The region has also banned the roads for private vehicles and bicycles.
From Thursday all primary and middle schools in the eight urban areas of the city will switch to distance learning.
In parallel with these decisions, the authorities are conducting extensive screening tests in various areas of the city, after which suspected cases are transferred to collective quarantine facilities.
The Corona outbreak also caused 85% of flights in and out of Guangzhou airport to be canceled, or about 1,000 flights, as of Thursday morning, according to data from flight tracking company Variflight.
The signs of the end of tough Chinese policies to combat the spread of the Corona virus are not yet in sight. In this context, on Tuesday the deputy director of the Guangzhou Municipal Health Commission stressed in a press conference: “At the moment, there is still a high risk of corona wave spread and the outbreak of the disease is still serious and complex.”
And CNN recorded that, despite its continuation, the closure decisions taken at this time are more focused and less harsh than those taken in many other cities, noting that people living in low-risk areas can go out to buy groceries. food and other Daily necessities, despite the state of quarantine, in exchange for a definitive ban in areas that according to the authorities are dangerous epidemiological hotspots.
Many fear moving towards a full citywide closure if cases of infection continue to rise, as happened in Shanghai, which was forced into a full closure earlier this year after infections hit 3,500. per day.
Anticipating the worst, many of the city’s residents stocked up on food, while others took to social media to express their anger and rejection of the restrictions imposed by the authorities.
