Wuhan plunged back into lockdown almost three years after first Covid case with 800k in quarantine amid spike in cases | The Sun
October 27, 2022CHINA has plunged 800,000 people in Wuhan back into lockdown as the Communist nation continues its brutal "Covid Zero" policies.
Beijing is taking a no-tolerance approach to the virus – enforcing a lockdown in the city after just 20 to 25 new infections a day this week.
Chinese leader Xi Jinping – who was this week made "Emperor for Life" – is using what has been dubbed as the "world's strictest lockdown" to control his citizens.
Wuhan has now joined 27 other cities under varying levels of lockdown rules – with nearly 210million people impacted by the restrictions.
The city was the site of the world's first Covid outbreak – sounding the alarm to the World Health Organisation (WHO) on December 31, 2019.
The outbreak then spiraled into a global pandemic that has so far killed more than 6.5million people and infected 635million.
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But while the rest of the world appears to be attempting to move on from Covid, China continues to use brutal policies to stop the virus.
China nationwide recorded just 1,000 new cases nationwide from its population of 1.4billion.
Wuhan has registered 240 cases over the last two weeks.
But that was enough to tip the scales as 800,000 people in one district were ordered to stay home until at least October 30.
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Wuhan has also suspended the sale of pork in parts of the city, according to reports on social media.
It was suggested the latest Covid cases could have been linked to the sale of meat.
And this matches with the theory that may have first emerged from Wuhan's now-infamous Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market.
The first cases of the virus were centered on the wet market in downtown Wuhan which was packed with live animals for sale.
It is suggested the virus could have jumped from one species to another before then mutating to infect humans.
Some have cast heavy doubt on this theory, however – instead pointing fingers at the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV).
WIV was home to various bat-based coronaviruses, and it's been suggested the infection could have escaped or been carried out by a sick worker.
China has always angrily denied these allegations – and the true origins of the virus remain unknown.
"I don't know what to do. If we can still survive living like this then I suppose that's what we'll do," one Wuhan resident told Reuters.
"When we see these news stories about Covid, we now feel a bit numb. We feel numb to it all.
"We feel more and more numb."
Wuhan was not the only new lockdown in China – with Guangzhou also being sealed up.
People were ordered to stay home in areas that were deemed high risk of Covid resurgence.
Guangzhou resident Lily Li, 28, said: "Many of my friends and coworkers have been under lockdown at home.
"The situation is still unstable. Many places are under lockdown. Classes have stopped and entertainment venues have been suspended too."
And meanwhile, in Xining there have been reports of food shortages and skyrocketing prices.
Other recent Covid outbreaks in China has seen the cities of Datong and Xi'an put under new measures.
Bejing attraction Universal Studios Resort was also shut down due to a single Covid case, and there were viral cases at a factory in Zhengzhou which makes iPhones.
"Once there's a case somewhere, and then you become a close contact, you've got to be in quarantine," said Beijing resident Wen Bihan, 26.
With a total of 28 cities under some measure of lockdown – this is impacting a region responsible for $3.5trillion, or 25 per cent, of China's GDP.
It stokes fears that Xi's ruthless Covid Zero policies could actually be the doom of his nation.
China has recorded a total of 258,000 Covid cases and just over 5,000 deaths – a small number compared to other nations.
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Britain meanwhile suffered 192,682 deaths from nearly 24million cases, while the US faces 99million cases and nearly 1.1million deaths.
However, there has been major sceptisim about China's figures – with numerous reports suggesting the Communist Party covered up the true extent of the giant nation's outbreak.
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