China's Guangzhou to suspend in-person school classes over COVID-19

GUANGZHOU -- The southern Chinese metropolis of Guangzhou Sunday announced the suspension of in-person classes at local primary and middle schools starting April 11 for COVID-19 control.

As of 2 pm Sunday, the city has registered 23 local infections since Friday amid its latest COVID-19 outbreak, said local authorities during a press conference held Sunday.

Starting from April 11, students in the city's primary and middle schools will switch to online classes. The exception will be third-graders in senior high schools whose schools have accommodation and closed-off management conditions, said Chen Xueming, deputy director of the city's education bureau, during the conference.

Kindergartens in Guangzhou will suspend admitting new children. The local off-campus training institutions will cancel offline teaching, and after-school care institutions will suspend services. Institutions of higher learning are expected to be put under closed-off management.

The physical education examination of the city's senior high school entrance examination, previously scheduled for April 11, will also be temporarily suspended, said Chen.

Currently, Guangzhou is building a makeshift hospital in its Pazhou exhibition center, said Wu Linbo, deputy secretary-general of the municipal government, at the press conference.