City's cemeteries fully booked for Qingming

All 160,000 slots to visit Shanghai’s 54 cemeteries and columbaria on April 4, the day of Qingming Festival, have been fully reserved, the city's civil affairs authorities announced on Wednesday.

Qingming is when Chinese people clean family tombs and pay tribute to their ancestors. This year, visitors to cemeteries are controlled via online reservations to prevent crowds amid the coronavirus disease pandemic. 

There are only a few slots left for April 5 and 6, which are also included in the three-day Qingming Festival public holiday, the Shanghai Civil Affairs Bureau said. A total of 140,000 and 120,000 slots were made available for reservation on these two days respectively, according to the bureau.

With cemeteries now booked to capacity, those without reservations are encouraged to avoid visiting, Zeng Qun, deputy director of the bureau, said during a press conference.

The city’s cemeteries and columbaria began taking reservations on their WeChat accounts starting from March 26, with four two-hour time slots available at each location every day between March 28 and April 12.

By 11am on Wednesday, the 54 cemeteries and columbaria have provided 450,600 reservation slots in total for tomb-sweepers, and 308,900 had been booked, the bureau said.

"Residents have answered authorities' calls and shown understanding, support and cooperation with our measures," Zeng said. 

Tomb-sweepers are required to have their temperatures checked, present their health QR code, wear masks and queue in an orderly fashion, said Zeng. 

Online tomb-sweeping platforms have also been opened by cemeteries via their websites or WeChat accounts, enabling residents to pay tribute to their deceased relatives online. 

Since March 14, cemeteries and columbaria in Shanghai have received 981,600 online visits, according to the bureau.

"'Cloud tomb-sweeping' will be promoted even after the epidemic to popularize new funeral and interment practices," said Zeng. 

Cemetery staff can also sweep tombs for families if requested, following procedures such as cleaning graves, bowing and laying flowers. Live broadcast and photographs can be provided.

"These services have been welcomed by many residents," said Zeng.

Shanghai's cemeteries and columbaria received 2.19 million tomb-sweepers during last year's Qingming Festival, according to the bureau. Authorities reported severe congestion on roads and expressways near burial locations.