The sudden Covid-19 spike in China, possibly due to Omicron BF.7 variant, has prompted people to take as many preventative measures as possible to avoid long queues at hospitals packed to the brim.

Multiple agencies including Bloomberg and AFP reported that Chinese hospitals and crematoriums are struggling to operate and are overwhelmed. Amid these concerns, the Chinese people have resorted to their own methods in dealing with the Covid-19 outbreak, some of which have gone viral on social media too.

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A viral video posted by China state-affiliated media, People’s Daily, shows a couple shopping for vegetables while protecting themselves from the risk of getting infected in an innovative way. In the video, the couple is seen covering themselves from top to bottom in a plastic wrap that is held by the support of an umbrella that the man is holding. Remaining inside the makeshift “shield”, the couple engages with people without initiating “direct” contact.

Upon seeing the video, while some people laughed off the trick used by the couple, others showed concern about the “epidemic”. Meanwhile, Chinese authorities said Sunday that the top health body will stop publishing daily Covid-19 data amid backlash over inaccurate reporting. This comes as China faced criticism over its decision last week to narrow the criteria by which Covid-19 fatalities were counted, which the experts said was an attempt to suppress the real fatalities, the news agency AFP reported.

Amid a report that China logged 37 million cases in a single day this week, the official data maintains that only six deaths were reported since the country dismantled its Covid restrictions, the AFP report added.