Shanghai airport is plunged into chaos after a ‘worker tested positive for Covid-19 prompting Hazmat-clad staff to herd THOUSANDS of people into basement for testing before they make bid for freedom’
- Hazmat suit-clad airport staff were filmed pushing against a massive crowd
- Were being forced into basement area inside Shanghai’s international airport
- But, amid fears of mandatory 14-day quarantine, the group tried to escape
An airport in China was plunged into chaos today after a worker tested positive for Covid-19 prompting officials to order airport-wide testing, witnesses claim.
Hazmat suit-clad staff were filmed herding a huge crowd into a basement area inside Shanghai Pudong International Airport in the country’s financial hub.
But, amid fears of mandatory 14-day quarantine, the group staged a mass bid for freedom.
An airport in China was plunged into chaos (pictured) today after a worker tested positive for Covid-19 prompting officials to order airport-wide testing, witnesses claim
Hazmat suit-clad airport staff were filmed herding a huge crowd in a basement area (pictured) inside Shanghai Pudong International Airport in the country’s financial hub
They were filmed pushing as the officials – wearing plastic face shields – linked arms to keep them in line.
Other clips showed a surge of people trying to escape via a ramp as heavily-outnumbered workers attempted to hold them back.
Some reports suggest the airport was testing only staff members, while others claimed everyone – including passengers – were subject to the new rules.
On Friday, Shanghai confirmed a married couple had contracted Covid-19 in the city’s Pudong district – its first locally transmitted COVID-19 infections in 11 days.
Crowds were filmed pushing as the officials – wearing plastic face shields – linked arms to keep them in line
Amid fears of mandatory 14-day quarantine, the group staged a mass bid for freedom, reports suggest
A 39-year-old man and a 34-year-old woman were reported as suspected cases on Friday afternoon and their nucleic acid tests returned positive results, the Shanghai government said in a statement.
A team of experts are tracking people who may have been exposed and are taking appropriate preventative measures, it added.
Mainland China reported 17 new Covid-19 cases on Saturday – up from 16 the previous day – with three cases of local transmission and nine cases originating overseas, the National Health Commission said on Sunday.
Some reports suggest the airport was testing only staff members, while others claimed everyone – including passengers – were subject to the new rules. Pictured: Officials trying to control the crowds
The Commission said in its daily bulletin that two of the local transmissions took place in Inner Mongolia and one in Shanghai.
Inner Mongolia’s health authority said on Saturday it had confirmed two new coronavirus cases in Hulunbuir city on the Chinese border with Russia.
According to a report from the official Xinhua news agency, the positive case in the city was found after mass testing following infections of a security inspector at Pudong International Airport and his wife.
Mainland China reported another 11 asymptomatic cases on November 21, down from 18 on the previous day.
It has so far reported an accumulated total of 86,431 COVID-19 cases, with the official death toll at 4,634.