
In this image taken from video provided by Beibei, who asked to be identified only by her given name, medical workers wearing protective suits chat as a resident takes a rest at the National Exhibition and Convention Center on April 15 in Shanghai.
11:34 JST, April 18, 2022
Beibei and her husband were ordered into the massive National Exhibition and Convention Center in Shanghai last Tuesday after spending 10 days isolated at home following a positive test. Their 2-year-old daughter, who was negative, went to her grandfather, while her nanny also went into quarantine.
Residents show “no obvious symptoms,” Beibei, who asked to be identified only by her given name, told The Associated Press in an interview by video phone.
There are people coughing, she said. “But I have no idea if they have laryngitis or omicron.”
The convention center, with 50,000 beds, is one of more than 100 quarantine facilities set up in China’s most populous city for those such as Beibei who test positive but have few or no symptoms. It’s part of official efforts to contain China’s biggest coronavirus outbreak since the 2-year-old pandemic began. But it’s also testing patience of people increasingly fed up with China’s harsh “zero-COVID” policy that aims to isolate every case.
At the beginning people were frightened and panicked, Beibei said. “But with the publication of daily figures, people have started to accept that this particular virus is not that horrible.”
Beibei was told she was due to be released Monday after two negative tests while at the convention center.
Most of Shanghai shut down starting March 28 and its 25 million people were ordered to stay home. That led to complaints about food shortages and soaring economic losses.
Anyone who tests positive but shows few or no symptoms is required to spend one week in a quarantine facility. Beibei said she had a stuffy nose and briefly lost part of her senses of taste and smell, but those symptoms passed in a few days.
On Sunday, China reported 26,155 new cases, all but 3,529 of which had no symptoms. Shanghai accounted for 95% of the total, or 24,820, including 3,238 with no symptoms.
The city has reported more than 300,000 cases since late March. Shanghai began easing restrictions last week, though a health official warned the city didn’t have its outbreak under control.
At the convention center, residents are checked twice a day for fever and told to record health information on mobile phones, according to Beibei. Most people pass the time by reading, square dancing, taking online classes or watching videos on mobile phones.
The 420,000-square-meter exhibition center is best known as the site of the world’s biggest auto show. Other quarantine sites include temporary prefabricated buildings.
Residents of other facilities have complained about leaky roofs, inadequate food supplies and delays in treatment for medical problems.
We haven’t found a place with a hot shower, Beibei said. “Lights are on all night, and it’s hard to fall asleep.”
A video obtained by AP showed wet beds and floors due a leaky roof in a different facility in a prefabricated building.
Bathrooms are not very clean, Beibei said. “So many people use them, and volunteers or cleaners can’t keep up.”
"News Services" POPULAR ARTICLE
-
India Says It Attacked Pakistan, Pakistani Kashmir
-
Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average Ends Higher; NTT Data Surges on Takeover Report (UPDATE 1)
-
Putin Declares 3-Day May Ceasefire to Mark 80 Years Since World War Two Victory
-
Prime Minister Ishiba Reiterates Demand for U.S. Removal of Auto Tariffs
-
Panasonic to Cut 10,000 Employees, Expects to Book $900 Million Reform Costs
JN ACCESS RANKING
-
U.S. Holds Fire Over Yen Exchange Rate Targets; Bessent Said to Understand Negative Impact on Markets
-
Rents Mark 30-Year-High Rate of Rise; Decrease in Disposable Income May Dampen Personal Consumption
-
Japanese Govt Mulls Raising Number of Cars to be Imported Under Simplified Screen System in U.S. Tariff Negotiations
-
Japan Must Boost Its ‘Indispensability,’ Urges JETRO Chair; Convince United States That Cooperation Will Be Beneficial
-
Japan Presses U.S. to Scrap 25% Auto Tariffs as Ishiba Refuses Partial Trade Deal; No Deal Without ‘Total Rollback’