Near the end of March, in the face of a growing COVID-19 outbreak, officials in Shanghai instituted strict lockdown controls, the start of what would become two months of tight restrictions imposed on 25 million residents. Now, following a decline in COVID-19 cases, those same authorities say they are taking steps toward reopening China’s largest city. Barriers that fenced in neighborhoods are coming down, and residents are cautiously venturing out into parks and shopping areas. Gathered below are images from the past few weeks of lockdown, and early signs of Shanghai’s reopening.
The End of Shanghai’s Two-Month COVID Lockdown
Hints:
View this page full screen.
Skip to the next and previous photo by typing j/k or ←/→.
-
![A half-dozen people wearing protective gear stand in a street under a street lamp.]()
Read moreWorkers in protective suits stand in a closed residential area during lockdown in Shanghai, China, on May 23, 2022. #
Aly Song / Reuters -
-
![A gate is blocked by a pile of bicycles.]()
Read moreA gate is blocked by a pile of bicycles from a bike-sharing service in Shanghai on May 13, 2022. #
Aly Song / Reuters -
![A child wearing a protective face mask holds a cat behind a tall barrier.]()
Read moreA child wearing a protective face mask holds a cat behind a barrier along a street in Shanghai on May 31, 2022. #
Aly Song / Reuters -
![A man takes a picture in the middle of an empty city street.]()
Read moreA man takes a picture on an empty Shanghai street during lockdown on May 26, 2022. #
Aly Song / Reuters -
![Workers wearing protective gear unload boxes from a truck in a city street.]()
Read moreWorkers wearing protective gear unload boxes from a truck during a COVID-19 lockdown in the Jing'an district of Shanghai on May 13, 2022. #
Hector Retamal / AFP / Getty -
![A worker in a protective suit looks through an opening in a barrier toward another worker standing beside a rack with several bags on it.]()
Read moreA worker in a protective suit looks through an opening in a barrier near a rack for deliveries on May 31, 2022. #
Aly Song / Reuters -
-
![Three people inside a locked residential area look through the bars of a closed gate, seen from above.]()
Read moreShanghai residents look out through a gate blocking the entrance to a residential area under lockdown on May 22, 2022. #
Aly Song / Reuters -
![A worker in a protective suit rests in an empty street.]()
Read moreA worker in a protective suit rests in a Shanghai street on May 31, 2022. #
Aly Song / Reuters -
![A man gets a haircut on a street next to a plastic barrier.]()
Read moreA man gets a haircut on a street next to a barrier in a locked-down neighborhood in the Jing'an district on May 30, 2022. #
Hector Retamal / AFP / Getty -
![A person stands on a balcony, overlooking a city street.]()
Read moreThis photo taken on May 10, 2022, shows a Shanghai resident looking out from a window during a COVID-19 lockdown. #
Hector Retamal / AFP / Getty -
![A resident peers over a temporary plastic wall on a city sidewalk.]()
Read moreA resident peers over a barrier that blocks a residential area on May 16, 2022. #
Aly Song / Reuters -
-
![A health worker stands in a booth with her arms poking out through rubber gloves, making a heart shape with her hands.]()
Read moreA health worker makes a heart with her hands while waiting to take swab samples from people in the Jing' an district on May 31, 2022. #
Hector Retamal / AFP / Getty -
![Several workers deconstruct a temporary wall on a city sidewalk.]()
Read moreWorkers dismantle barriers around a Shanghai neighborhood on May 30, 2022. #
Aly Song / Reuters -
![About 25 people can be seen standing in a line along a city street.]()
Read moreResidents line up to take nucleic-acid tests for COVID-19 in front of closed shops in the Pudong district on May 30, 2022. #
Liu Jin / AFP / Getty -
![People stand on a sidewalk looking at toppled sections of plastic barriers.]()
Read morePeople stand next to toppled barriers—first erected on March 19 according to local residents—taken down on the afternoon of May 31, 2022, in the Jing'an district. #
Hector Retamal / AFP / Getty -
![A boy runs over fallen barrier sections.]()
Read moreA boy runs over fallen barrier sections in the Jing'an district on May 31, 2022. #
Hector Retamal / AFP / Getty -
-
![Three children play in a park, amid a small cloud of bubbles.]()
Read moreChildren wearing protective face masks play in bubbles at a park, as Shanghai prepares to end the lockdown placed to curb the spread of COVID-19, on May 31, 2022. #
Aly Song / Reuters -
![Two people walk on a path in a riverside park.]()
Read morePeople walk near a bridge over the Huangpu River on May 31, 2022. #
Hugo Hu / Getty -
![A small child wearing a protective face shield plays with a dog on a sidewalk.]()
Read moreA child wearing protective gear plays with a dog on May 25, 2022, in Shanghai. #
Yves Dean / Getty -
![People pose for pictures on a scooter in a shopping plaza.]()
Read morePeople pose for pictures at a Shanghai shopping area on May 31, 2022. #
Aly Song / Reuters -
![A person takes a photo at night, with a tall illuminated tower seen in the background.]()
Read moreA woman takes photos near the Oriental Pearl Tower on May 31, 2022, in Shanghai. #
Ng Han Guan / AP -
-
![People gather on a city street at night, talking and embracing.]()
Read morePeople hug on a street, as Shanghai prepares to end its lockdown on May 31, 2022. #
Aly Song / Reuters
We want to hear what you think about this article. Submit a letter to the editor or write to letters@theatlantic.com.