China puts city in lockdown ahead of Olympics

Residents in the Chinese city of Xi'an appeared calm on Friday as they entered their second full day of strict lockdown, imposed after a spike in coronavirus cases.

The lockdown took effect at midnight on Wednesday with no word on when the restrictions might be lifted.

One person from each household will be allowed out every two days to buy household necessities, a government order said.

Other family members are required to stay at home.

"I didn't think much about it when other cities were locked down in the past," said Yang Jing, a 23-year-old resident.

"But once it happened to myself and I have had to stay at home for the past two days, I started to realize that things might be a bit serious."

Although no one could leave the neighbourhood, Yang said residents were allowed to walk freely inside the residential compound and buy groceries in supermarkets.

Liang Liwen, a college student in Xi'an, said all classes had moved online and the campus was closed because of the lockdown.

Liang said last time he faced a lockdown was when the coas the country doubles down on its "zero tolerance" policy just weeks before it is set to host the Winter Olympics.ronavirus was first detected in China.

With that experience, he believed that the recent outbreak would be handled well.

Xi'an — the capital of Shaanxi province, famed for its imperial relics, as well as a major center of industry — reported another 49 locally transmitted cases on Friday, pushing the city's total to 255 since December 9, according to the Shaanxi government.

China has also been dealing with a substantial coronavirus outbreak in several cities in the eastern province of Zhejiang near Shanghai, although isolation measures there have been more narrowly targeted.

The country has reinforced on its "zero tolerance" policy on coronavirus outbreaks ahead of the Winter Olympics next month.