FILE PHOTO: A medical worker collects a swab from a resident of Lanzhou’s Chengguan district.
BEIJING: Authorities in China canceled hundreds of flights, closed schools and conducted mass testing on Thursday to stamp out a new Covid-19 outbreak involving a group of tourists.
Beijing has maintained a relentless zero-Covid approach with strict border closures and targeted lockdowns, even as other countries attempt to ease restrictions.
Domestic outbreaks have largely been contained, but as China entered a fifth straight day of new cases – mostly in the northern and northwestern regions – officials stepped up coronavirus controls.
The latest outbreak was linked to an elderly couple who were in a group of several tourists. He started in Shanghai before flying to Xi’an, Gansu Province and Inner Mongolia.
Dozens of cases have been linked to his travels, with close contacts in at least five provinces and territories, including the capital Beijing.
In response, local governments have launched mass testing and closed sights and tourist sites, schools and entertainment venues in affected areas, and also imposed targeted lockdowns of housing compounds.
Some areas, including Lanzhou – a city of about four million people in northwest China – have told residents not to leave unless necessary.
Those who need to leave will have to submit a negative Covid-19 test.
Airports in the affected areas have canceled hundreds of flights, according to data from aviation tracker VeriFlight.
About 60 percent of flights to the two main airports in Xi’an and Lanzhou have been canceled.
In a notice published on Monday, Ehrenhot in Inner Mongolia said travel in and out of the city was banned and residents should not leave their housing complex.
And on Wednesday, state-owned tabloid Global Times cautioned that new virus cases in Inner Mongolia are likely due to supply chain disruptions affecting coal imports from Mongolia.
China’s National Health Commission said 13 new domestic cases were reported on Thursday.
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