Topline
Shanghai reported more than 13,000 new Covid-19 cases on Tuesday as the city’s outbreak surges despite an ongoing lockdown, prompting authorities in the Chinese financial hub to indefinitely extend curbs that were scheduled to end on Tuesday.
A worker in protective gear holds a sign which reads “Keep one meter apart” along an empty street in … [+]
Key Facts
According to China’s National Health Commission, Shanghai reported 13,086 new asymptomatic Covid-19 cases on Tuesday, up from 8,581 a day earlier.
The city of 26 million residents also reported 268 new symptomatic cases, down from 425 on Monday.
Shanghai’s ongoing two-phase lockdown which began last week was scheduled to end Tuesday, but city authorities late Monday said the restrictions will remain in place while the situation is being evaluated and mass testing results are analyzed.
Local authorities have also placed additional restrictions that include suspension of several subway lines.
More than 10,000 health workers from across the country—including 2,000 from the Chinese military—have been sent to Shanghai to help deal with the outbreak, the Associated Press reports.
Big Number
792. That’s the total number of symptomatic Covid-19 cases detected in China’s northeastern Jilin province, with most cases being reported in its capital Changchun. While Shanghai’s asymptomatic caseload far outstrips that of Jilin, the region continues to report close to 70% of China’s new symptomatic cases and it deals with its own stringent lockdown.
Key Background
Last week, Shanghai began a two-stage lockdown to control its ongoing surge fueled by the highly contagious omicron sub-variant known as BA.2. The first phase began on Monday and was limited to the city’s Pudong financial district and nearby neighborhoods east of the Huangpu River. That phase was supposed to end on Friday following several rounds of mass testing and be followed by a lockdown on the city’s massive downtown area, to the west of the Huangpu River. However, the eastern part of the city, which was supposed to re-open last Friday, also continues to remain locked down. While China has previously used snap lockdowns and mass testing to stomp down on outbreaks as part of its “dynamic zero Covid” strategy, the current one in Shanghai faces two key challenges, the sheer size of the city which houses 26 million residents and the highly infectious nature of the BA.2 variant.
Further Reading
Shanghai lockdown deepens after new surge in asymptomatic COVID cases (Reuters)
10,000 health workers sent to help control Shanghai outbreak (Associated Press)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/siladityaray/2022/04/05/shanghai-extends-covid-19-lockdown-as-case-count-continues-to-rise/