Days after lifting the curbs that were in place as part of its zero-Covid policy, China is reportedly witnessing an explosion of cases. Such is the situation that the authorities finally acknowledged deaths for the first time since lifting its strict pandemic control policies.
The recent outbreak is so severe that a crematorium in Beijing designated to handle Covid cases is reportedly witnessing a huge increase in demands. On Baidu, China’s dominant online search engine, searches for "funeral homes" by Beijing residents have hit a record high since the pandemic began, reported CNN.
Many business owners too are facing staff crunches as employees fall ill, forcing authorities to step in.
Harvard-based epidemologist and health economist Eric Feigl-Ding shared a video on Monday, purpotedly from China, which shows dead bodies piling up at hospitals.
A tweet by Feigl-Ding said epidemiologists estimate over 60 percent of China and 10 percent of earth’s population are likely to get infected over next 90 days.
⚠️THERMONUCLEAR BAD—Hospitals completely overwhelmed in China ever since restrictions dropped. Epidemiologist estimate >60% of 🇨🇳 & 10% of Earth’s population likely infected over next 90 days. Deaths likely in the millions—plural. This is just the start—🧵pic.twitter.com/VAEvF0ALg9
— Eric Feigl-Ding (@DrEricDing) December 19, 2022
He added that China's current Covid goal is "let whoever needs to be infected infected, let whoever needs to die die. Early infections, early deaths, early peak, early resumption of production."
As many as 2.1 million deaths are expected with the loseing for Covid curbs, said a paper published by the Shanghai Journal of Preventive Medicine last month. Infections could rise to more than 233 million. Multiple studies conducted by American and British organisations too forecast over one million deaths immediately after the curbs are lifted.
According to Chinese experts, the worst is yet to come. Wu Zunyou, the chief epidemiologist at the Chinese CDC, said the country is being hit by the first of three expected waves of infections this winter. Wu told a news conference in Beijing on Monday that the current wave would run until mid-January while the second wave is expected to last from late January to mid-February next year.
However, China's current focus is on regaining economic momentum, it has vowed to carry out a a vaccination drive for the elderly. Experts believe the reason for Covid surge in China is undervaccinated population with little natural immunity.
Meanwhile, the US has expressed concern that the situation in China might spawn new mutations of the virus. "When it comes to the current outbreak in China, we want to see this addressed," State Department spokesman Ned Price said in a briefing on Monday. "We know that anytime the virus is spreading in the wild that it has the potential to mutate and to pose a threat to people everywhere," he added.
