Pandemic causes large drop in cemetery visits on Tomb-Sweeping Day

The number of people who visited graves in Shanghai during the three-day Qingming Festival from April 4 to 6 dropped by 88 percent compared with the same period last year, the Shanghai Civil Affairs Bureau said.

Due to the COVID-19 epidemic, most citizens chose to pay their respects to the dead through online memorial ceremonies or engaging cemetery staff to perform the customary tomb sweeping activities.

According to the bureau, 54 commercial cemeteries in the city received 793,600 visitors from March 28 to April 6. On the other hand, some 1.15 million online visits were made to these same cemeteries. Cemetery staff also held 36,200 ceremonies to pay respects to the dead on behalf of others.

A collective memorial ceremony was also held in 54 commercial cemeteries in the city, the bureau reported.

During the three-day holiday, the number of tourists visiting Shanghai city parks also decreased by 49 percent year-on-year to 1.74 million, according to the Shanghai Landscaping and City Appearance Administrative Bureau.