Shanghai will lock its eastern half – known as Pudong and including the main international airport and financial district – for five days of testing starting Monday, the government said. A similar lock will follow on its west side, known as the Puxi and on the historic banks of the Bund River, from 1 April. The metropolis of 25 million inhabitants has become in recent days the top hotspot in a nationwide epidemic that began to intensify in early March. Although recent case numbers remain insignificant globally, they are the highest in China since the first weeks of the pandemic, which first appeared in Wuhan City in late 2019. China’s National Health Commission on Sunday reported more than 4,500 new domestic cases – down more than 1,000 from the previous day, but still much higher than the double-digit daily rates usually seen in the last two years.
Lock to eliminate Covid infections
Millions of residents in affected areas across the country have been locked down across the city. Shanghai, however, has so far avoided a complete lockdown, with officials saying it was imperative to keep East China’s port and economic hub operational – for the good of both the national and global economies. However, as the number of cases increases, the city government said in a public statement that the two-part lockdown is being implemented “to limit the spread of the epidemic, to ensure the safety and health of people” and to eliminate cases of infection. “as soon as possible”. The announcement said buses, taxis and the city’s extensive metro system would also be closed during the lockdown. He made no mention of any impact on air travel or rail services in and out of the city.
