SHANGHAI/BEIJING, (Reuters) – Shanghai yesterday announced an end to its two-month long COVID-19 lockdown, allowing people in virus-free areas of China’s largest city to leave their homes and drive their cars.
The news brought an outpouring of relief, joy and some wariness from exhausted residents.
“I’m so emotional that I’m going to cry,” said one Weibo user.
Most of the city’s 25 million residents have been confined to their homes for almost all of two months, with curbs only slightly relaxing in recent weeks to allow some to go out for short periods of time.
Local authorities had earlier this month said they planned to fully restore normal life by next month but it as not clear how they would carry that out amid an insistence on sticking to China’s zero-COVID policy.
Some residents greeted the news with disbelief, reflecting on how what was originally supposed to be a lockdown lasting just under five days for most became a longer ordeal.
“Please don’t be lying to me,” one person said on social media. “I’m numb,” said another.