Toddler’s death raises new questions about human costs of China’s zero-Covid measures

Name: Lockdown around world’s largest iPhone factory in China fans production worries
Uploaded: 2022-11-03T12:12:04.000Z
Duration: 1 min 50 s
Description: Lockdown around world’s largest iPhone factory in China fans production worries

Anguished father says his son was dying from gas poisoning while he pleaded with local authorities for help

Three-year-old’s death is latest in string of heart-wrenching cases where urgent treatments were denied due to Covid protocols

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China’s zero-Covid policy is under scrutiny again after an anguished father pleaded with indifferent local authorities for help while his son was dying from gas poisoning. Photo: AFP

Xinlu Liang

Published: 8:12pm, 3 Nov 2022

The death of a three-year-old boy in a district under lockdown in the city of Lanzhou has sparked fresh anger about the human cost of China’s strict zero-Covid-19 policy. The measures, which have included erratic and lengthy lockdowns, have been linked to a series of deaths across the country.

The death, which happened on Tuesday in the capital of the northwestern province of Gansu, came to light after the father made a series of online posts on Weibo, China’s version of Twitter.

Tuo Shilei wrote that the drama began around noon when he had discovered his wife unconscious in their home. He tried to call an ambulance while trying to save her and after about 20 minutes, Tuo was able to resuscitate her.

Soon after, Tuo discovered that their son was lying on a bed unconscious.

After unsuccessfully attempting to use the same emergency procedure to revive the boy, Tuo said he tried several times to call for ambulances, the police and his community centre but was unable to get help.

An ambulance that had been dispatched 40 minutes earlier for his wife had still not arrived.

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Lockdown around world’s largest iPhone factory in China fans production worries

With the help of some neighbours, Tuo was able to climb over a compound barrier and then tried to seek help at a nearby checkpoint, but was refused and told to continue calling for an ambulance.