China is reportedly being ravaged by a mysterious viral outbreak that is overwhelming some hospitals.
Videos on social media appear to show hospital units overrun with patients in face masks, and parents holding sick children in long lines in pediatric units.
There have also been unverified reports that crematoriums and funeral homes are being overwhelmed.
Local news reports have blamed a little-known virus called human metapneumovirus (HMPV) — which normally causes a mild cold-like illness — for the latest outbreak, though officials have yet to confirm this.
The situation is similar to winter 2022/23 when China was hit with a wave of mycoplasma pneumonia cases, a condition dubbed ‘white lung’, which is also normally mild.
That outbreak was blamed on children having low natural immunity due to the effects of China’s harsh lockdowns and school closure measures aimed at containing Covid.
But official reports from the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention suggest that regular flu is leading the latest outbreak, with 30 percent of tests coming back positive for influenza and one in seven people hospitalized with a severe respiratory illness testing positive for it.
But the Chinese CDC warned that rates of multiple flu-like illnesses are on the rise.
In its latest report, for the week to December 29, data suggested that 7.2 per cent of outpatient visits to local hospitals in northern provinces were due to a flu-like illness.
This was up 12 per cent on the previous week, and above the levels for the same week every flu season since 2021.
Data for the southern part of the country suggested that 5.7 per cent of outpatient visits were due to flu-like illness.
This was up 21 per cent on the previous week, and also above the level’s for the same week in 2021 when 4.1 per cent of visits were due to flu-like illness. It was, however, below the levels in 2022 and 2023.