Residents of Beijing are flooding supermarkets to stock up for food in fear of a looming lockdown as the capital records a growing number of Covid infections.
Food stockpiling is happening in an effort to avoid a Shanghai-style shortage if lockdowns are imposed.
Authorities in Beijing have ordered the 3.5 million residents and workers of the biggest district, Chaoyang, to report for mandatory testing this week. Each person needs to take three tests. It comes following reports the area recorded 26 of Beijing’s 47 symptomatic cases since Friday.
China today reported 3,266 symptomatic cases and 20,454 asymptomatic ones. Most were in Shanghai, which is still in a tough lockdown to bring cases back down to zero. Beijing’s spike in cases could mean a lockdown is imminent for the capital.
In the capital region Chaoyang, more than a dozen residential buildings were put on lockdown. The city’s Communist party head said that the district is the top focus for pandemic prevention at this moment. Today, hundreds lined up at testing sites across the district.
Authorities are hoping to avoid repeating how the Shanghai lockdown went. The city resisted going into lockdown before partial city closers were imposed, and then a sweeping total lockdown was imposed.
Shanghai is now in its fourth week of lockdown. It has created major food shortages and huge delays in deliveries. Beijing’s residents took note, and have flocked to supermarkets to stock up in case they soon cannot leave. Tight entry controls have been imposed on the city already as well.
Photos across social media show empty shelves at some of Beijing’s stores. The state-backed English tabloid The Global Times said that according to Beijing officials, the city has sufficient daily supplies and that the mass testing would determine whether the district would need further measures, like a lockdown, implemented.
Be the first to comment