Shanghai’s Disneyland resort was shut down on Monday due to COVID-19 protocols and is not allowing people to leave the park until they have tested negative for the virus.
Shortly before noon local time, the location said it would abruptly close its park and nearby areas to go along with attempts to cut down on COVID-19 cases. The drastic action happened after Shanghai had 10 locally spread cases on Saturday. Online videos showed people hurrying to the gates of the resorts only to find them locked. A woman who had recently been to the Disneyland resort produced a positive test result for COVID-19.
“We will notify guests as soon as we have a confirmed date to resume operations,” the resort said in a statement.
The government of Shanghai reportedly said on its official WeChat messaging account that the amusement park was not letting people come in or out of the location and everyone inside would not be allowed to get out until they had received their test results. In addition, those who had gone to the location since October 27 will have to be tested for COVID-19 three times within three days. Amusement rides kept going for people who were trapped in the park during the shutdown, according to people on social media, per CNBC. Earlier this year, the resort was shut down for more than three months when the city closed down due to COVID.
A Shanghai Disney Resort spokesperson said the location was still carrying out “limited offerings” and complying with rules from Chinese health officials. Last November, the park was shut down for two days and trapped over 30,000 people after a contact tracing drill was issued.
Over the past 28 days, Shanghai has had 97 COVID-19 cases, according to Johns Hopkins University, per NPR. In all, the city has had 64,282 infections and 595 deaths. The entire country has reportedly seen around 180,000 infections and 212 deaths over the past four-week time period.
China’s economy has suffered due to the strict “zero-COVID” policy to eliminate COVID-19. Earlier this week, the MGM Cotai in Macau was shut down over the virus.
“In compliance with the Macau Special Administrative Region Government of Pandemic Prevention and Control, our restaurants, spa, gym, swimming pool, and retail shops in MGM Cotai are closed and shuttle bus service for MGM Cotai is suspended until further notice. We apologize for any inconvenience,” the MGM said in a statement.
President Xi Jinping recently stood by the intense rules, saying the policy was “a “people’s war to stop the spread of the virus.” He appeared to show that he would not be drawing down on the intense measures, even as the economy and citizens continue to suffer from the restrictions. Xi was recently elected for a third term as leader of the Communist Party.
