The park announced on the morning of Oct. 31 that it would immediately suspend operations in the main theme park and its surrounding area, including its shopping street, due to COVID-19 rules. City authorities announced on WeChat that no one would be allowed to enter the theme park. Those who were unfortunately stuck inside were prohibited from leaving until they returned a negative test result.
Moreover, they reminded visitors who went to the park since Oct. 27 to test for COVID-19 thrice in three days.
A representative of the theme park said the SDR had been following measures in line with guidelines from Chinese health authorities. Earlier, the resort said it was operating with a reduced workforce in compliance with COVID-19 mandates.
Despite this, the park continued to operate "limited offerings" as attested by some social media users – who said some theme park rides were still running.
On the same day as the announcement, viral footage on the Chinese social media platform Weibo showed people rushing to the park's already-locked gates. Reuters was unable to verify the footage's authenticity, while the SDR did not respond to queries about how many visitors were inside the park.
On Oct. 30 – a day before the SDR locked down – Shanghai reported 10 locally transmitted COVID-19 cases. According to city authorities, all 10 cases were asymptomatic.
Meanwhile, the Universal Beijing Resort theme park in the capital reopened on Oct. 31 after being closed for five days. The park's closure was driven by measures to stamp out COVID-19.
At the behest of the central government in Beijing, authorities have continued to enforce extreme measures to curb the spread of COVID-19 in line with the country's zero-COVID policy.
History repeats itself: SDR locked down over COVID-19 on same date last year
This was not the first time the SDR was locked down due to COVID-19. Exactly a year ago, the theme park was abruptly shuttered with more than 30,000 people stuck inside after one person tested positive. (Related: Over 34,000 people trapped at Shanghai Disneyland after ONE person tested positive for COVID-19.)
On Oct. 31, 2021, staff members quietly sealed the theme park as marshals wearing hazmat suits entered the gates. The marshals prepared to administer COVID-19 tests to park guests before letting them leave.
Almost 34,000 people at the resort underwent COVID-19 testing, which ended close to midnight. The people were brought home on 220 special buses after being tested. While they were found to be negative on Nov. 1, 2021, the park guests were advised to isolate at home for two days and get tested once more for COVID-19 in two weeks.
The snap lockdown at the theme park was triggered by a woman who traveled to Shanghai from nearby Hangzhou and subsequently tested positive for SARS-CoV-2. Her infection sparked an aggressive contact tracing effort across China, which eventually involved park visitors, their families and theme park staff.
The resort eventually reopened for business on Nov. 3, 2021.
Head over to Pandemic.news for more stories about COVID-19 lockdowns in China.
Watch this G News report about Shanghai Disney Resort being abruptly closed due to COVID-19 measures back in September 2022.
This video is from the Chinese taking down EVIL CCP channel on Brighteon.com.
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