The number of corona infections in China is rising rapidly due to the more contagious omikron variant of the virus.
More than 9,000 local infections with symptoms have been counted this year, which, according to calculations by Reuters news agency, is more than in 2021. Last year there were 8378.
On Monday, 1337 local infections were registered and on top of that 100 imported cases. 906 new asymptomatic infections have also been counted, but China does not officially see them as confirmed cases of Covid-19. The current outbreak is the largest for China since the pandemic started more than two years ago.
Strict measures are taken to prevent new infections. In Shenzhen, among others, there is a lockdown. The city of 17 million inhabitants is located north of Hong Kong. That region is dealing with a larger outbreak, resulting in hospitals and morgues being overcrowded.
However, according to the regional leader, a lockdown is not possible because Hong Kong, unlike mainland China, does not have the necessary infrastructure for it.