Covid clampdown traps millions at home

Millions of people were confined to their homes in China yesterday as the country tried to contain its largest coronavirus outbreak in months, including seven positive tests found in Wuhan, where the virus first emerged in late 2019.

China reported 55 new locally transmitted cases yesterday as an outbreak of the fast-spreading Delta variant reached more than 20 cities in a dozen provinces.

The Wuhan cluster was confirmed by state media which said the seven infected were identified as migrant workers, and traced the infections back to a train station.

Major cities including Beijing have now tested millions of residents while cordoning off residential compounds and placing close contacts under quarantine.

More than 1.2 million residents were placed under strict lockdown for the next three days in the city of Zhuzhou in Hunan province as authorities roll out a citywide testing and vaccination campaign.

"The situation is still grim and complicated," the Zhuzhou government said.

Beijing had previously boasted of its success in bringing local cases down to virtually zero after the Covid first emerged in Wuhan, allowing the economy to rebound.

But the latest outbreak, linked to a cluster in the city of Nanjing where nine cleaners at an international airport tested positive on July 20, is threatening that success with more than 360 domestic cases reported in the past two weeks.

Meanwhile, Beijing has blocked tourists from entering the capital during the peak summer holiday travel season.

The capital's Changping district locked down 41,000 people in nine housing communities last week.