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| Today's record cases came from various districts across Hong Kong |
The new cases include an unprecedented 15 Filipinos who
recently arrived from Manila
The all-time high was reached in just eight hours, after the
Health Department adjusted its cut-off reporting time to midnight, instead of
4pm the next day, to cope with the sudden spike in cases.
This means that the 108 cases were confirmed only between
4pm and 12 midnight on Saturday. Today's total tally will be reported at midnight tonight.
Dr Chuang Shuk-kwan of the Centre for Health Protection
warned at today’s press briefing that the local medical system could collapse
if the situation did not improve.
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| Tinghayan ang isa na namang kwentong Dream Love |
She also said that the number of confirmed cases could go up
sharply within today, as she was aware of about 60 more confirmed or
preliminary cases detected since after midnight Saturday.
Another concern is the apparently “stronger” or more
infectious strain of the coronavirus that is going around, compared to the one
that caused a spike in infections last March.
Chuang said that’s because she has seen cases in which the
virus managed to infect another during short contacts of about a few minutes,
involving someone without a mask on.
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| Chuang warns a more infectious coronavirus strain appears to be causing the surge in cases |
Of today’s cases, 48 are of unknown source, further igniting
the worry that many asymptomatic super spreaders are passing the virus around.
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The number of imported cases was also up sharply at 25.
Apart from the 15 Filipinos who flew in from Manila ,
the other infected travelers came from Japan ,
Pakistan , India , Bahrain
and the United States
Chuang said information on two other travelers were still
pending although one appears to be an airline crew from Japan who might have
just transited in Hong Kong.
The CHP official said 35 of the local cases were linked to
previous or today’s cases, and that most of them are family members, fellow
diners or fellow mahjong players.
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| PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE |
Chuang said there were cluster cases among the new
infections. Some were linked to the Windsor Restaurant or Green River
Restaurant in the epidemic hotspot Tsz Wan Shan, and family members who had
eaten or played mahjong together.
One more case was linked to three previously confirmed
patients who had played at a tennis centre in San Po Kong.
Of the untraceable cases, three involved taxi drivers and an
employee of a frozen meat shop in a market in Hung Hom.
She reminded people who go to wet markets to wash their
hands regularly, especially after they touch produce or pay with cash, because
the virus may remain in the environment.
“Paper money is something that you cannot cleanse with
alcohol, so after touching it, try not to touch your eyes or noses or mouths,
and wash your hands quickly,” she said.
Chuang said that the new patients live in different
districts, from the epicenter Tsz Wan Shan, to Siu Sai Wan and Yuen Long.
