China dispatches military planes and doctors to Shanghai.
Key Takeaways:
- Early Monday, China landed one of its largest military transport planes in Shanghai, carrying 2,000 medical personnel from its armed forces.
- Since last week, Shanghai residents, who have been under lockdown, were photographed and videoed queuing up to be tested at dawn.
- According to state media, a Chinese Air Force heavy transport Y-20 aircraft was parked at a Shanghai airport early Monday morning.
As the financial hub prepares to conduct Covid-19 tests on around 25 million residents in 36 hours, China landed one of its largest military transport planes with 2,000 healthcare workers from its armed forces in Shanghai early Monday.
On Sunday, China reported 13,137 new Covid-19 cases, including 11,771 asymptomatic cases, making it the country's 2nd day in a row that has reported over 13,000 cases.
The ongoing countrywide outbreak in China has put an unexpected strain on the country's healthcare infrastructure in Shanghai as well as the northeastern province of Jilin and has left authorities scrambling for new ways to respond to the Omicron-driven surge in cases.
Since the pandemic started in the central Chinese city of Wuhan in late 2019, health officials in Shanghai have been testing residents since Monday morning in one of the world's largest mass testing operations.
Residents of Shanghai, who have been under lockdown since last week, were photographed and videoed queuing up to be tested at daybreak.
The local government has urged shanghai residents to participate in the tests in a calm and orderly manner.
Food and other necessities are being shipped to Shanghai to ensure a steady supply of essentials and avoid panic buying.
With 8581 asymptomatic cases and 425 symptomatic infections reported for Sunday, the Shanghai government is scrambling to contain the city's worst Covid-19 outbreak since the pandemic began.
The presence of military doctors and aid demonstrates the gravity of the situation.
"The medical personnel came from seven different medical units in the army, navy, and joint logistics support force. They carried out medical treatment, nucleic acid testing, and other essential tasks as soon as they arrived in Shanghai, according to the People's Liberation Army (PLA) daily.
According to state media, a Chinese Air Force heavy transport Y-20 aircraft was parked at a Shanghai airport early Monday morning.
When the outbreak was at its height in early 2020, the Y-20 military aircraft, one of China's largest transport aircraft, was deployed in Wuhan to deliver aid to the city.
Several provinces and cities, including Zhejiang and Beijing, have sent doctors and healthcare workers to Shanghai as the city's health infrastructure struggles to cope with the influx of cases.
As per some estimates, there could be as many as 10,000 healthcare workers from other parts of China.
Since the initial Covid-19 outbreak in Wuhan, China's public health response has grown significantly. ACCORDING TO THE STATE COUNCIL, CHINA'S CABINET, the PLA deployed over 4,000 medical personnel to the province of Hubei, whose capital is Wuhan, in early 2020.
President Xi Jinping of China has urged the country to halt the outbreak's momentum as quickly as possible while adhering to the "dynamic-clearance" policy.
The central government dispatched Vice-Premier Sun Chunlan to Shanghai, urging the city to "take resolute and swift steps" to combat the pandemic.