As temperatures soar in China, millions wait in queues to get tested for Covid

Mass Covid testing has been rolled out in the Chinese metropolis of Chongqing after it reported 40 Covid-19 infections on Wednesday. The problem, however, isn't this. The country is currently facing a record heatwaveand millions of residents are left standing under the sun, waiting to be tested. Several parts of China are battling wildfires and drought amidst a crippling heatwave.

Over 10 million people in the city's central urban districts have been ordered to undergo mandatory Covid tests amidst soaring temperatures, with the highest in Chongqing crossing the 40 degrees Celsius mark. Over 3,800 temporary testing sites have been set up across the central districts, and people have been sharing photos of people passing out in the extreme heat.

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"It's 43 degrees, the people of Chongqing are already stretched to the limit," a resident said on Weibo.

The reason people are enduring such extreme heat and queueing up to get tested instead of simply skipping it is that they need the health codes on their mobile phones to turn green from orange if they wish to go about their daily lives. That will only happen if they complete the Covid tests.

If people don't go through the process, they won't be allowed to enter public spaces and attend gatherings. A resident told CNN that his health code app told him Wednesday midnight that he needs to take the test. "Forcing more than 10 million people to do Covid tests in such high temperatures is deplorable," he told CNN. "This is neither scientific, reasonable, nor legal." He later faced aproblem when he was barred from entering a supermarket because of the orange code on his health app.

A record heatwave is crippling the country. Wildfires have enveloped the area in recent days with firefighters battling the fires. Residents of Chongqing have been complaining of smelling smoke in their houses. The country is facing power outages amid high demand for air-conditioning and reductions in hydropower capacity due to droughts.

(With inputs from agencies)