Authorities in North Korea’s capital Pyongyang have ordered a five-day lockdown owing to an increase in cases of an unnamed respiratory infection, according to NK News, citing a government announcement.
The warning did not reference COVID-19 but instead stated that city residents must remain inside their homes through Sunday night and must submit to daily temperature checks.
The website noted on Tuesday that it appeared that people in Pyongyang were stockpiling products in anticipation of more stringent measures. It is unknown if other regions of the nation have implemented fresh lockdowns.
The first COVID-19 outbreak in North Korea was reported last year, but by August, the virus had been proclaimed eradicated.
The covert nation never disclosed the number of COVID cases, perhaps due to a lack of resources for broad testing.
Instead, it listed the daily total of patients with fever, which, out of a population of around 25 million, reached 4.77 million. But since July 29, there have been no similar incidents reported.
State-run media have kept up their coverage of anti-pandemic measures to combat respiratory illnesses like the flu, but they haven’t yet covered the lockdown order.
The city of Kaesong, which is close to the South Korean border, reportedly increased public awareness campaigns on Tuesday “so that all working people voluntarily respect anti-epidemic regulations in their job and lives.”
ALSO READ: How the internet reacted to the major power outage in Pakistan
