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Elderly man in Beijing is China’s first Covid death since Shanghai wave as outbreak spirals
- 87-year-old is first fatality since the spring, as health official warns of ‘severe’ situation in the capital
- ‘If several million elderly people above 80 years of age have not been vaccinated, it will pose a potential risk,’ virologist in Hong Kong warns
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Wendy Wuin Beijing
China has reported its first Covid-19 death in six months – an 87-year-old man in Beijing – as the country battles its worst wave of cases since Shanghai’s spring outbreak.
A leading virologist called for a boost to vaccination rates among the elderly and more public education to ease panic around the virus.
The official Beijing Daily reported on Sunday that the man started to cough on November 11, and was confirmed infected with mild symptoms on November 13. But his condition worsened due to severe pulmonary infection and he suffered septic shock and later died, the report said.
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It did not say whether the deceased was vaccinated.
This was the first documented Covid-19 fatality in the country since Shanghai authorities reported one on May 26, amid a spring outbreak that sparked months of painful lockdown.
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Beijing reported 621 cases on Sunday, with residents urged to stay indoors during the weekend to cut off transmission chains.
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