China closes off third major city

Anyang’s 5.5 million residents will be watching the world from inside their homes as the city went into coronavirus lockdown on Monday. Two cases of the omicron variant were detected in Anyang on Monday, and officials say the restrictions will prevent the spread before the Beijing Olympics kick off in February. According to China, these are the first omicron infections that were not contracted from overseas travelers and their contacts. At least 58 more infections in Anyang were reported between Monday and Tuesday with more unconfirmed.

What does lockdown look like in China? People are not allowed to go out or drive, and nonessential businesses are closed. Xi’an, a city of 13 million, has already been locked down for three weeks with 2,000 cases. Yuzhou’s 1.1 million citizens have also been shut in for more than a week, bringing total quarantined residents to nearly 20 million. Experts said this may worsen supply chain transportation problems, The Wall Street Journal reported. The major port city of Tianjin was placed on partial lockdown on Sunday after at least 40 people tested positive for COVID-19.

Dig Deeper: Listen to Mary Reichard report on the World Health Organization’s interest in Wuhan, China, as it searches for COVID-19’s origin.