The lockdown that served as a model for countries battlingthe coronavirus around the world has ended after 11 weeks: Chinese authoritiesare allowing residents of Wuhan once again to travel in and out of thesprawling city where the pandemic began.
As of just after midnight Wednesday, the city’s 11 millionresidents are now permitted to leave without special authorization as long as amandatory smartphone application powered by a mix of data-tracking andgovernment surveillance shows they are healthy and have not been in recentcontact with anyone confirmed to have the virus.
The occasion was marked with a light show on either side ofthe broad Yangtze river, with skyscrapers and bridges radiating animated imagesof health workers aiding patients, along with one displaying the words heroiccity,” a title bestowed on Wuhan by president and Communist Party leaderXi Jinping.
Along the embankments and bridges, citizens waved flags,chanted Wuhan, let’s go! and sang a capella renditions of China’s nationalanthem.
I haven’t been outside for more than 70 days, said anemotional Tong Zhengkun, who was watching the display from a bridge. Residentsin his apartment complex had contracted COVID-19, so the entire building wasshut down. He couldn’t go out even to buy groceries, which neighborhood workersbrought to his door.
Being indoors for so long drove me crazy, he said..
It didn’t take long for traffic to begin moving swiftlythrough the newly reopened bridges, tunnels and highway toll booths, whilehundreds waited for the first trains and flights out of the city, many hopingto return to jobs elsewhere.
Restrictions in the city where most of China’s more than82,000 virus cases and over 3,300 deaths were reported have been graduallyrelaxed in recent weeks as the number of new cases steadily declined. Thelatest government figures reported Tuesday listed no new cases.
While there are questions about the veracity of China’scount, the unprecedented lockdown of Wuhan and its surrounding province ofHubei have been successful enough that countries around the world adoptedsimilar measures.
The people in Wuhan paid out a lot and bore a lot mentallyand psychologically, resident Zhang Xiang said. Wuhan people are historicallyfamous for their strong will.
During the 76-day lockdown, Wuhan residents had been allowedout of their homes only to buy food or attend to other tasks deemed absolutelynecessary. Some were allowed to leave the city, but only if they had paperworkshowing they were not a health risk and a letter attesting to where they weregoing and why.
Even then, authorities could turn them back on atechnicality such as missing a stamp, preventing thousands from returning totheir jobs outside the city. Residents of other parts of Hubei were allowed toleave the province starting about three weeks ago, as long as they couldprovide a clean bill of health.
Prevention measures such as wearing masks, temperaturechecks and limiting access to residential communities will remain in place inWuhan, which is the capital of Hubei.
In an editorial, the ruling Communist Party’s flagshipPeople’s Daily warned against celebrating too soon.
This day that people have long been looking forward to andit is right to be excited. However, this day does not mark the final victory,the paper said.
At this moment, we still need to remind ourselves that asWuhan is unblocked, we can be pleased, but we must not relax. In anticipationof the lockdown’s lifting, SWAT teams and staff in white hazmat suits hadpatrolled outside the city’s Hankou railway station, while guards attended asecurity briefing under the marble arches of its entrance.
Tickets for trains out of Wuhan to cities across Chinaalready were advertised on electronic billboards, with the first train leavingfor Beijing at 6:25 a.m. A line designated for passengers headed to the capitalwas roped off, while loudspeakers blared announcements about pandemic controlmeasures, such as keeping safe distances and wearing masks.
Wuhan is a major center for heavy industry, particularlyautos, and while many major plants have restarted production, the small andmedium-sized businesses that provide the most employment are still hurting fromboth a lack of workers and demand. Measures are being instituted to get them backon their feet, including 20 billion yuan ($2.8 billion) in preferential loans,according to the city government.
China blocked people from leaving or entering Wuhan startingJan. 23 in a surprise middle-of-the-night announcement and expanded the lockdownto most of the province in succeeding days. Train service and flights werecanceled and checkpoints were set up on roads into the central province.
The drastic steps came as the coronavirus began spreading tothe rest of China and overseas during the Lunar New Year holiday in lateJanuary, when many Chinese travel.
The exact source of the virus remains under investigation,though it is thought to be linked to an outdoor food market in the city.
In preparation for the end of the lockdown, Party SecretaryWang Zhonglin, the city’s highest-ranking official, inspected the city’sairport and train stations Monday to ensure they were ready. The city must”enforce prevention while opening up, maintain safety and orderliness andthe assurance of stability, Wang said.
Mission one: to make sure the epidemic doesn’t resurge, hesaid.