Elsewhere in China, tens of millions of people are under different forms of lockdown.

The city of Tangshan east of Beijing banned traffic for 24 hours on Sunday in hopes of slowing the virus’ spread and will test all its 7.7 million people.

The port city of Xiamen closed universities, suspended in-person classes and shut down entertainment facilities.

Authorities across the country are rushing to create hospital beds, fearing a devastating wave of infections, similar to the one that has overwhelmed Hong Kong’s medical system and filled its mortuaries in the past few weeks.

On Saturday, China reported two coronavirus-related deaths – the first two in more than a year. The deaths, both in Jilin province, brought the country’s coronavirus death toll to 4,638 since the start of the pandemic.

Both fatalities were elderly patients, of whom one had not been vaccinated against Covid-19, health officials said.

Although the number of infections and deaths are relatively small compared to other countries, Chinese leaders are indicating they will keep the course in order to prevent a potential spike in the number of deaths.