Major Chinese city locks down to control Covid outbreak

December 24, 2021: -On Thursday, the major city in central China that’s seen a flare-up of Covid-19 cases locked down, with local authorities using language similar to that used during the height of the pandemic in the country.

The outbreak in Xi’an city stems from the delta variant, authorities said. Mainland China has only reported a handful of Omicron cases so far, while the rapidly spreading strain has become the dominant variant in the U.S.

Xi’an city’s confirmed coronavirus case count is far less than the other cities reported overseas. But the city has also written an unspecified number of hemorrhagic fever cases, a high mortality disease transmitted by rodents. Local authorities have noted that the disease appears seasonally, typically from October to January and April to June.

On Wednesday, the Xi’an municipal government told residents not to leave the city unless necessary and ordered apartment compounds and workplaces to require passes for exit and entry starting on Thursday.

Authorities said that each household could only send one person out every two days to buy groceries and other necessities, echoing some of the more stringent policies announced in different parts of the country in early 2020.

Xi’an city told businesses like movie theaters and in-person educational institutions to halt operations and prohibit dining in restaurants. Authorities banned large-scale events, while schools have shut or moved classes online.

The city reported 143 confirmed locally transmitted cases between December 9 and Tuesday. Authorities said late Wednesday that the second round of city-wide testing found 127 positive points. It was not immediately clear whether there was any overlap in the figures.

According to official data accessed through Wind Information, Xi’an accounts for just under 1% of China’s GDP. Electronics giant Samsung and U.S. chipmaker Micron have significant operations in the city, home to many research or manufacturing centers for semiconductors, aerospace, and different high-tech industries.

The city attracts many tourists for its Terracotta Warriors, an army of clay sculptures from ancient times. Located in central China, well more than 800 miles from the east coast metropolis of Shanghai, Xi’an is one of the last major urban areas before the poorer regions of the west.

The local spread of the coronavirus cases means that Xi’an city had one high-risk district and 40 medium-risk districts as of Wednesday. These risk designations affect the virus control measures used, especially for determining whether a traveler is allowed into another city.