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Shanghai aiming to have zero COVID cases outside quarantine centers

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Published April 17, 2022, 4:25 p.m. ET

Shanghai reportedly aims to have zero COVID-19 cases outside of its quarantine centers by Wednesday, in what could be a turning point for the city’s strict “no tolerance” lockdowns that’ve left residents increasingly frustrated.

The target will allow the city to further ease its lockdown and start returning to normal life, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.

In order to meet the goal Wednesday, officials will accelerate COVID testing and the transfer of infected residents to quarantine centers, according to a speech by a local Communist Party official.

Workers in protective suits disinfect an old residential area under lockdown amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, in Shanghai, China, April 15, 2022.
Shanghai is aiming to have zero COVID-19 cases outside its designated quarantine centers by Wednesday. REUTERS/Aly Song
Residents stand on a street waiting for nucleic acid test during lockdown amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, in Shanghai, China, April 17, 2022.
Shanghai imposed strict lockdowns in response to an outbreak driven by the Omicron variant. REUTERS
A child receives a swab test for the Covid-19 coronavirus in a compound during a Covid-19 lockdown in Pudong district in Shanghai on April 17, 2022.
Shanghai officials will accelerate COVID testing and the transfer of infected residents to quarantine centers. LIU JIN/AFP via Getty Images

Shanghai imposed strict lockdowns in response to an outbreak driven by the Omicron variant. Since the surge began in early March, the city has counted 320,000 cases.

Under the “no tolerance” policy, only healthcare workers, volunteers, delivery personnel and those with special permission are able to move freely.

The strict rules mean that quarantined residents have to order in food or wait for government drop-offs of vegetables, meat and eggs, BBC reported.

Workers in protective suits are seen at a residential area under lockdown amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, in Shanghai, China April 15, 2022.
Under Shanghai’s strict lockdown, only healthcare workers, volunteers, delivery personnel and those with special permission are able to move freely. REUTERS/Aly Song
Residents line up to get their throat swab at a coronavirus testing site, Tuesday, April 5, 2022, in Beijing. China has sent more than 10,000 health workers from across the country to Shanghai, including 2,000 military medical staff, as it struggles to stamp out a rapidly spreading COVID-19 outbreak in China's largest city.
Shanghai residents recently classed with officials over the strict lockdown measures. AP/Andy Wong
FILE PHOTO: Residents line up for nucleic acid tests during a lockdown, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, in Shanghai, China, April 16, 2022.
Residents in quarantined centers claim they have not been given enough supplies for lockdown. REUTERS/Aly Song

Frustrated Shanghai residents, however, have expressed anger on social media over what they say are shortages of food and other items.

Footage posted to Twitter showed people in the locked-down city banging pots on their balconies and chanting, “We want supplies,” France24 reported.

“We want supplies,” the quarantined residents reportedly chanted.

With Post wires