Shanghai Disneyland Shuts Down Over Covid, Visitors Can’t Leave Without Negative Test
UPDATED with Disney statement: Shanghai’s Disney Resort was not exactly The Happiest Place On Earth on Monday. The park abruptly shut down to comply with China’s controversial zero-Covid policy, leaving all visitors trapped inside for hours until they could show a negative test for the virus.
The resort announced at 11:39 am local time it would immediately close the main theme park and surrounding areas until further notice to comply with Covid measures. The city health bureau and Disney said guests all tested negative and were allowed to leave by 8:30 pm.
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City authorities told Reuters the resort barred guests from leaving or entering after they became aware of a 31-year-old woman who had visited the park in recent days testing positive for the coronavirus.
The Shanghai government said on its official WeChat account that anyone who had visited the park since October 27 would need to test for Covid three times in three days.
According to reports on social media, the park continued to operate rides for people who were stuck in the park on Monday.
Shanghai reported 10 locally transmitted cases for October 30, all of which it said were people without symptoms.
The latest closure at Shanghai Disney is similar to one that took place last year. Disney is “required to follow the standard procedures set forth by Shanghai, which was the same process for a previous closure like this one that occurred one year ago,” a Disney spokesperson said in a statement.
“We thank our cast and guests for their patience, and are working on plans for reopening,” the statement said.
The Universal Resort in China’s capital of Beijing reopened on Monday after a five day closure, which was also caused by Covid restrictions.
Deadline’s Tom Tapp contributed to this report.
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