Authorities in Beijing, the capital of China, called on Friday to speed up the construction of COVID-19 quarantine centers and tent hospitals, triggering a wave of residents looking for supplies, either in supermarkets or with online orders.
The tension increased in recent days as unconfirmed reports circulated that the increase in cases would generate strict isolation measures in some neighborhoods of the city, amid a policy of zero tolerance for the coronavirus promoted by the regime despite its negative impact on the economy.
COVID-19 cases are reaching records across the country, with 32,695 daily cases on Friday, and a good part is concentrated in Beijing, 1,860 positive, and mostly asymptomatic.
A worker in a protective suit sprays disinfectant as residents line up for their routine COVID-19 throat swabs at a coronavirus testing site in Beijing, Thursday, Nov. 24, 2022. Andy Wong/AP
Beijing authorities have asked groups of residents not to leave their housing complexes, some of which have been fenced off.
At the entrances, workers covered from head to toe in white protective suits can be seen stopping people and checking for a negative COVID-19 test result.
In addition, several university campuses have been closed and students in the lower grades have started taking classes online again.
The situation brings to mind the quarantine centers and makeshift hospitals during the pandemic, some of them hastily assembled in gyms, exhibition centers and other large spaces, known for
their appalling sanitary conditions, their scarcity of available food and regulations such as the use of lights on 24 hours a day
.
At a press conference on Friday afternoon, city government spokesman Xu Hejian said it was necessary to "strengthen the management and service guarantee" of quarantine centers and field hospitals where people are staying. who test positive for COVID-19 or have been in close contact with an infected person.
The authorities must “further speed up” its construction, he said, and “coordinate the allocation of space, facilities, materials, personnel, and other resources.”
On Friday, families in Beijing rushed to hoard reserves, at a level not seen in months.
Although the reaction is not the same throughout the city, where 21 million people live and there are usually no shortage problems.
While in the northern suburbs the shelves of the markets were practically empty, in the center, hardly a few buyers were to be seen.
Food delivery apps crashed
Some online grocery delivery services are stretched to capacity as demand spikes amid a shortage of workers.
This meant that some customers were unable to get food and meal deliveries for the same Friday from well-known apps such as Alibaba's Freshippo and Meituan Maicai.
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There were comments from Chinese users explaining that the workers could not work because their housing complexes were closed, although these versions have not been confirmed.
Alibaba did not comment on the reasons for the delays.
Isolated Cities and Mass Testing
At the local level, meanwhile, officials are under intense pressure to prevent outbreaks and often lean toward the most extreme measures.
Guangzhou suspended access to its Baiyun district of 3.7 million people on Monday, while residents of some areas of Shijiazhuang, a city of 11 million southwest of Beijing, were told to stay at home while They do massive testing.
While the number of cases and deaths in China is relatively low compared to the US and other countries, the party remains committed to the strategy, which aims to isolate every positive or suspected case and eliminate the virus entirely (which includes mass testing and total shutdowns).
A key issue is concern about public vulnerability to the virus.
Since few have contracted COVID-19 or even been exposed to the virus, it is believed that only a small percentage have built up effective levels of antibodies to fight the virus.
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China has an overall coronavirus vaccination rate of more than 92%, with most people having received at least one dose.
But rates are lowest among older adults, particularly those over 80.
The policy is seen as having a harsh impact on the economy and changing lives in many Chinese cities, prompting the World Health Organization and others to call for a change of course.
But these calls have been firmly rejected by the ruling Communist Party.
Economic analysts and the International Monetary Fund have anticipated that the annual growth rate of China's economy will slow as the government closes shops and offices and tightens controls on manufacturing.