BEIJING, April 20, 2022 (BSS/AFP) - China reported seven Covid-19 deaths in
Shanghai on Wednesday, raising the toll in the city to 17 fatalities as
authorities struggled to rein in infections despite a gruelling, weeks-long
lockdown.

The fast-spreading Omicron coronavirus variant has driven a huge spike in
cases in the metropolis of 25 million people, and the government has imposed
tight movement restrictions and multiple rounds of mass testing to combat the
outbreak.

The lockdown has taken a heavy social and economic toll, with residents
voicing their fury on social media over food shortages and lack of access to
non-Covid medical care.

The seven newly reported deaths were cases with underlying conditions such as
lung cancer and diabetes, city authorities said. Five of the patients were
people over the age of 70.

The patients "became severely ill after admission to hospital, and died after
ineffective rescue efforts, with the direct cause of death being underlying
disease," the Shanghai government said in a statement.

The city reported more than 18,000 new and mostly asymptomatic coronavirus
cases on Wednesday.

More than 400,000 infections have been reported in Shanghai since March, and
the city reported its first Covid deaths on Monday.

The official death toll remains low compared with the reported cases, but
some have cast doubt on these figures, pointing to the low vaccination rate
in China's vast elderly population.

By comparison, Hong Kong -- which also has a high number of unvaccinated
elderly -- has recorded nearly 9,000 deaths out of 1.18 million known cases
since Omicron surged there in January.

Beijing insists its zero-Covid policy of hard lockdowns, mass testing and
lengthy quarantines has averted fatalities and the public health crises seen
in many other parts of the world.

But the latest lockdowns have clogged supply chains, forcing businesses to
halt production.

Authorities have called for a "white list" of key industries and companies to
be drawn up so production can continue, with more than 600 firms identified
for early work resumption in Shanghai.
US electric car giant Tesla "officially resumed production" on Tuesday, state
media reported, after suspending work at its "gigafactory" in the city for
more than 20 days.

The resumption will happen in a "closed-loop system", however, with staff
sleeping on site and being tested for Covid, Bloomberg News reported.