The incident, which took place on Sunday afternoon, was filmed by viewers and the footage quickly spread on the Internet, causing outrage in the city that has been under exhaustive lockdown for five weeks. It also raised concerns about the city’s overworked medical system. In the video, workers in protective clothing are seen pulling a bag out of a morgue truck into a trolley. They look inside the bag before realizing that the person inside is alive. “Alive! Did you see that? Alive!” says one. “Do not cover him again!” says another. An employee goes to talk to people wearing protective suits outside the building, and the elderly patient is on wheels behind. The Shanghai New Long March Welfare Institute put the still-living elderly man in a body bag and sent him to a funeral home for cremation. The elderly in Shanghai have not died enough and have been burned alive. People do not need to die from the new crown. pic.twitter.com/O6Zn5qV76L – Fang Zhouzi (@fangshimin) May 1, 2022 The incident was confirmed by the Putuo district government, which said investigations had begun. The Shanghai Supervisory Board and the Central Disciplinary Inspection Committee said five officials, including the care director and a doctor, had been fired and were being investigated. Another local party official was reprimanded. Shanghai Xinchangzheng Nursing Home apologized, and the funeral home reportedly praised its staff for noticing that the man was still alive and rewarded them with 5,000 yuan (£ 600) each. State media reported that the elderly patient had been taken to hospital and was receiving treatment. The incident shocked people in China, where an Omicron wave is challenging the government’s commitment to zero Covid measures, including severe quarantine and mass testing. It also tests the determination and trust of the residents. “What if this incident had not been recorded by the citizens of Shanghai?” said one commenter in a state media post. “Nursing homes and nursing homes will be the last resort for many seniors, especially for some lonely seniors who have no choice,” said another. “Who would dare send his parents to a nursing home now? And who would dare to live in a nursing home in peace? Shanghai authorities tried to avoid the lockdown, but in early April responded to their assurances, sending about 25 million people inside. The lockdown is plagued by issues such as food shortages and delivery problems, and has sparked protests online as well as in people’s homes and streets. He also released a video of a man who said he was a worker in Shanghai walking down a street to stop a truck and beg for food. “People of Shanghai, not a single person cares about us. Take care of us! Expose this! Help me reveal this! I’m a worker. I will die of hunger! ” says, according to a translation of the Chuang blog. Shocking video of a worker in Shanghai, who stops a truck to reveal his despair and hunger. Man cries when given bananas and crackers pic.twitter.com/trNTM9vHzi – Chuang (@chuangcn) May 3, 2022 Authorities said on Saturday that more than 15 million people were now able to flee their communities, with the virus spreading mainly to quarantined people. However, on Monday, 58 new cases were identified in the free group of residents. Officials did not comment on the new cases, which caused some residents to fear further lockdowns or delays in reopening the city. On Sunday, residents of Ningbo, south of Shanghai, were told they had to take a negative test every 48 hours if they wanted to use public transportation or enter public places. In Beijing, authorities also refrained from enforcing mass lockdowns, instead focusing on frequent tests of millions of people in at least a dozen areas and other strict measures. Restaurants, entertainment venues and schools were closed and travel restrictions imposed on and from the city in anticipation of the five-day May Day weekend. Authorities reported 62 new cases Monday. In total, China reported 368 confirmed symptoms and 5,647 asymptomatic cases. The vast majority – 274 and 5,395 respectively – were found in Shanghai. There are growing numbers of asymptomatic cases being detected across the country, including dozens in Liaoning, Zhejiang, Jiangxi and Xinjiang. Additional mention by Chi Hui Lin
