China’s strict zero-COVID policies ruined the fun for hundreds of people attending Halloween festivities at the Shanghai Disney Resort.
On Monday the park closed abruptly, sending many visitors unsuccessfully scrambling for the gates to try to get out. The park did not warn visitors inside or those waiting to get in about the immediate closure, and it is unclear what sort of outbreak prompted it, according to Reuters. On Saturday, the park had announced it would be operating with a limited workforce, and that some live events would be cancelled, but the park remained open.
Several people trapped inside did, however, post on social media that a number of the rides were still running while people underwent mandatory testing. Anyone who tests negative will be allowed to leave, but will have to complete three more tests in the next three days while isolating, local media reported. Additionally, anyone who had visited the park since Oct. 27 is also required to undergo three tests in three days. The park did not say how many people were stuck inside, but during a similar lockdown last November more than 30,000 visitors were trapped for two days until they tested negative or were sent away for quarantine.
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Those who test positive will be taken to China’s notorious quarantine centers.
The sudden closure follows a similar panic-driven debacle at the Foxconn iPhone factory in Zhengzhou over the weekend after some workers tested positive. Media reports showed workers climbing the factory walls and fences to try to escape. Many of the workers are from smaller villages, and Chinese authorities reportedly tracked many down to force them to quarantine to avoid spreading the virus.
Around 1,000 new cases were reported across China on Saturday for a fifth straight day, state media reported. Last Wednesday, the Universal Resort in Beijing also abruptly closed but all visitors have since either tested negative or have been transferred to quarantine centers.
China—where COVID-19 originated—remains the only country in the world to continue to impose a zero-COVID policy, with frequent lock downs, often without warning, to try to stem the spread of the virus. Friday, officials announced the construction of a $221 million permanent quarantine facility in Shanghai to help monitor those being quarantined.
