Stranded tourists begin leaving locked down Chinese city

Tourists are beginning to leave China’s Inner Mongolia after a swift lockdown this week left more than 10,000 people stranded in the Ejin Banner region.

China’s Xinhua news agency said on Friday that transport had been arranged out of the area for some 500 travelers.

They left Inner Mongolia on a train for the eastern city of Zhengzhou.

Localized lockdowns were imposed last week and a strict stay-at-home order was issued for everyone in the Ejin Banner on Monday.

Residents and tourists were told that “those who violate the rules… will face severe punishments according to the law.”

Given the region’s landmass and comparatively small population, there have been reports of people struggling to get food and necessities.

The Ejin Banner is located in the Gobi Desert, next to the Mongolian border. It is roughly the size of South Korea and has a population of around 30,000 people.