China recorded its first deaths on Monday since the relaxation of the strict measures of its “
zero Covid
” policy, at a time when hospitals and crematoriums in Beijing are overwhelmed by an unprecedented wave of cases.
The Asian giant abruptly turned around in early December and lifted most of the health restrictions in force for nearly three years, since the appearance of the first cases of coronavirus in the city of Wuhan (center) at the end of 2019.
Since the lifting of restrictions, the Covid-19 epidemic has exploded in China.
But its extent is "
impossible
" to determine, by the admission of the authorities, screening tests are no longer mandatory.
Experts fear that the country is ill-prepared for the wave of infections linked to this reopening, while millions of elderly and vulnerable people are still not vaccinated.
On Monday, authorities reported the deaths of two patients in Beijing, the only ones so far since restrictions were lifted on December 7, according to official figures.
The Chinese capital and its 22 million inhabitants have since been particularly affected by a wave of contamination unprecedented since the start of the pandemic, and which has spread at lightning speed in recent days.
Testimonies point to a resurgence of deaths in hospitals and overwhelmed crematoria, while anti-flu drugs are lacking in pharmacies.
"
The (official) figures don't tell the whole
story," said Leong Hoe Nam, an infectious disease expert based in Singapore, who said he expected a much higher toll.
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And to argue: some hospitals are too full to welcome new patients while the importance of the Covid may have been minimized by the nursing staff.
As a result, if someone dies “
of a heart attack following the stress of an infection
” with Covid, “
the heart attack will then be the main (retained) cause of death, even though the Covid is the underlying cause. underlying
," Leong Hoe Nam told AFP.
"
Three Waves
"
Since the lifting of the restrictions, the authorities have been trying to reassure about the benign nature of the virus despite its contagiousness - contrary to the official discourse since the start of the pandemic.
The municipality-province of Chongqing (southwest), which has more than 30 million inhabitants, is thus one of the first to authorize the return to work despite symptoms of Covid.
"
Asymptomatic and mildly symptomatic patients can go to work normally
," said a notice from the municipality published by the local
Chongqing Daily
on Sunday .
At the other end of the country, the province of Zhejiang, bordering Shanghai, has also decided that people with mild symptoms can “
continue to work
” provided they take “
protective measures
”.
One of the country's leading epidemiologists, Wu Zunyou, has warned that China is facing "
the first of three waves
" of Covid expected this winter.
The current wave is expected to last until mid-January and mainly affect cities, before displacement linked to the Lunar New Year holidays (January 22) triggers a second in February.
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The third peak will occur between late February and mid-March when those infected during the holidays return to their workplaces, Wu Zunyou said, according to comments reported by the Caijing business daily.
