Creepy Scenes Featuring Hazmat Covered Stormtroopers As China Locks Down Xi'an After Only 52 COVID Cases

China has locked down about 13 million people in neighbourhoods and workplaces in the northern city of Xi'an, which is famous for its terracotta warriors.

The move follows a spike in COVID-19 cases, which has set off panic buying just weeks before the country hosts the Winter Olympic Games.

State media reported that city officials on Wednesday ordered all residents to stay home unless they had a pressing reason to go out and suspended transport to and from the city, apart from special cases.

The order was to take effect at midnight and last indefinitely.

One person from each household would be permitted out every two days to buy household necessities, the order said.

However, some residents questioned if even this would be permitted.

Xi’an on Wednesday reported 52 new locally transmitted cases of COVID-19 over the previous 24 hours.

China has adopted strict pandemic control measures under its zero-transmission policy, leading to frequent lockdowns, universal masking and mass testing.

Those measures have been stepped-up in recent days ahead of the start of the Beijing Winter Olympic Games on February 4.