Chinas Silicon Valley Launches Mass Tests After Single COVID Case Reported
This is the moment thousands of residents in ‘China’s Silicon Valley’ wait in line for tests after a single imported case of COVID-19 was reported over the weekend.
The authorities in the city of Shenzhen in the south-eastern Chinese coastal province of Guangdong confirmed one case over the weekend and announced new travel measures and widespread testing to prevent spread.
As of Monday at noon, all passengers leaving the Shenzhen Bao’an International Airport have to present a negative nucleic acid test taken within the previous 72 hours.
Residents of Guangzhou and Foshan, also in Guangdong Province, and anyone who has travelled to those two cities in the last fortnight, have to show a negative nucleic acid test taken within the previous 48 hours before boarding a flight.
Meanwhile, railway stations in Shenzhen, home to many of China’s biggest technology firms, also expect commuters travelling to other provinces to show a negative test taken within 72 hours.
City residents, who total over 12 million, are required to present a ‘green pass’ QR code on their phone before entering stations, according to the city government.
The authorities in the district of Futian launched a mass nucleic acid testing programme on Sunday to check all 1.77 million citizens for COVID-19 within a three-day period.
The new measures followed confirmation that a 45-year-old worker at Yantian port tested positive for the virus on Sunday.
The unnamed man had previously tested negative 11 times after being identified as a contact of another case from late May.
His result was positive on the worker’s 12th test while he was self-isolating for 14 days.
Meanwhile, local tech firms have stepped up safety measures in light of the new case.
A spokesman for drone manufacturer DJI said they had bolstered their temperature screening checks and mandated face masks for all in-house workers.
Internet company Tencent Holdings said on Sunday that all workers in Guangzhou need to work from home for at least one week as of Monday, but have stopped short of asking the same of employees in Shenzhen for now.
