SHANGHAI: The southern Chinese beach holiday city of Sanya on Hainan island imposed a lock down on Saturday August 8 and shut down its public transport system to try and stop a COVID 19 outbreak during its peak tourist season.
The curbs would start at 6 am, saying that the situation in COVID 19 was very severe and people's movements were being restricted. It didn't say when the measures would be lifted.
Authorities said in a statement on the city government's WeChat account, we urge the general public and tourists to understand and give their support.
The city of Hainan Island reported 263 COVID cases for Friday. Authorities said they had detected the Omicron subvariant BA. The city is known for its duty-free shopping and is home to several high-end hotels run by international companies like IHG and Marriott International during the high tourist season.
The deputy mayor, He Shigang, told state television station that there were about 80,000 tourists in the city. People must have two negative PCR tests taken within 48 hours to leave Sanya.
The city imposed lockdown measures in some places on Thursday. More malls, such as its duty-free malls, which are popular with Chinese shoppers who can't travel abroad, were shut on Friday.