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Less than three weeks before the start of the Winter Olympics, Beijing has recorded its first case of Omicron and has imposed strict rules to enter the city. Maintaining its zero tolerance policy for Covid-19, the capital suspended most of its connections with the outside.
This Saturday, the Chinese capital registered its first case of Omicron less than three weeks before the Winter Olympics began on February 4. The tests are multiplying in the city and new mobility restrictions were imposed to protect the course of the Games at all costs. To enter the city, any traveler has to present a negative PCR test of less than 48 hours and the transport lines between the capital and the cities where cases of Covid-19 have been registered will be mostly canceled.
For now, a single case of Ómicron has been detected and no new contagion has been registered in the capital this Sunday or Monday. However, authorities are awaiting possible new cases as the origin of the infection in Beijing is not confirmed.
Alleged contamination by a letter
The contagion in Beijing could have come from a contaminated package sent from Canada that the patient who fell ill received a few days before she began to have symptoms. Pang Xinghuo, deputy director of the Beijing Municipal Center for Disease Control and Prevention, explained at a press conference that the patient had no history of contact with any risk group and that she received this package on January 11 and began to show symptoms. on January 13.
In addition, according to the expert, positive samples have been collected in the package of coronavirus strains very similar to ones that are only found in North America and Singapore. The package was delivered from Canada on January 7 and passed through the United States and the city of Hong Kong before arriving in Beijing. However, several scientists are skeptical of this explanation as the letter traveled for 4 days before reaching Beijing.
Rise in pollution two weeks before the Chinese New Year
China continues with its “zero Covid” policy and intensified its strict measures to control the pandemic. It re-implemented strict and partial lockdowns, shut down transport links, and carried out mass testing to prevent any new outbreaks.
Several cities like Tianjin have become points of concern. The city, which is located 100 kilometers southeast of Beijing, registered 300 cases of Covid-19 in the last week, including some of the Omicron variant. All schools are closed and rail connections with Beijing have been suspended. The inhabitants cannot leave the city without authorization.
The largest center of positives in the country is the northern city of Xi’an, which has recorded more than 2,000 new cases in recent weeks and has become China’s largest source of contamination since 2020. The inhabitants cannot leave the city and they can only make purchases once every three days.
China will celebrate the Lunar New Year on February 1 and the authorities have prevented travel that is not “strictly necessary” since the Chinese tend to travel en masse on these dates. The total number of active infections in the country reaches 3,494 cases.
The Olympic Games will not host foreign spectators
The Organizing Committee of the Beijing Olympic Games confirmed on Monday that the public from abroad will not be able to attend the competitions. Only “designated” spectators who comply with the contagion prevention regulations will be able to attend the event, but the health authorities did not give more details about who these people will be.
The Games on February 4 will be held in a bubble without contact with the outside in the city of Beijing. Athletes and workers will be isolated from the local population at all times, from their arrival in the country until their departure. Those who will enter the bubble will have to be fully vaccinated or quarantine for 21 days and all will be tested daily.
The Winter Olympics thus become the strictest sporting event globally since the start of the pandemic.
With Reuters, AFP and EFE
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