INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
China&s popular tourist island of Hainan locked down more areas on Monday as it battles its worst COVID-19 outbreak after recording very few
cases over the past two years, compared with many other regions in the country.About 25,000 tourists were stranded in Sanya, the hardest-hit
city in Hainan&s outbreak and the island&s key tourist center, as of Sunday, The National reported.The island in the South China Sea, which
recorded just two local symptomatic COVID cases last year, has reported more than 1,400 infections this month. Although that is small by
global standards, it is the province&s biggest outbreak since the virus was first reported in the central Chinese city of Wuhan in late
2019, The National reported.The provincial capital city of Haikou, with about 2.9 million residents, and two smaller towns, Ledong and
Chengmai, locked down its residents on Monday, according to state media reports.The lockdowns in several cities on the tropical island
dashed hopes for a quick rebound of the country&s ailing aviation sector, which had counted on a summer travel boom to help to trim record
losses.As of Sunday, mainland China had confirmed 231,266 cases with symptoms, including both local patients and symptomatic international
travelers.The post China&s COVID-19 lockdown strands 25,000 tourists in Sanya resort town first appeared on Ariana News.
