By The SUN
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| Images of Omicron XE strain, said to combine the lethal force of the B.1 or B.2 strains (Yahoo photo) |
There was a significant drop in the number of confirmed cases of Covid-19 reported on Friday.
The day’s tally was 5,823, about 800 less than Thursday’s, and the seventh consecutive day that the number has fallen to four digits.
Dr Chuang Shuk-kwan of the Center for Health Protection again said that while the number of cases is on the decline, it is still high at more than 5,000.
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There could also be a rebound if people started to gather again, especially during the upcoming holidays.
She advised people to stagger their outings, go to less crowded places or when the foot traffic is no longer at its peak, and do not take off their masks in public.
Chuang also reminded everyone that the penalty for certain violations of anti-pandemic restrictions was raised recently to $10,000.
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This includes failing to comply with a compulsory testing notice or violating an isolation and quarantine order for infected patients and their close contacts, respectively.
Asked if health authorities were monitoring recent arrivals from overseas for the so-called XE strain of the Omicron variant, Chuang said this has already been found in two travelers from abroad who arrived in mid-February, but did not appear to have spread within the community.
While acknowledging overseas reports that this blend of the BA.1 and BA.2 strains is several times more infectious than the regular Omicron, she said local experts are waiting for more analysis from their counterparts abroad.
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"We will closely monitor the latest information from
other places and the World Health Organisation to see if there are any new
viral strains that may threaten
Chuang said the new cases took
Of the new cases, three were imported, and involved two air
crew who arrived from
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The total death toll rose to 7,732, with 116 additional fatalities recorded. They included 96 who passed away yesterday, and an additional 20 whose deaths were not reported on time.
They pushed up the death rate to an all-time high of 0.67%.
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| Chuang warns th 5+ infection tally is still serious |
Dr Sara Ho of the Hospital Authority said the reported fatalities from yesterday were aged between 38 and 103 years old.
The youngest patient was a man who had mental issues, and had three doses of the Sinovac vaccine.
On Mar 17 he became emotional after testing positive on rapid test and slashed his hand. He was taken to a hospital for treatment.
On Mar 28 he was taken to
Ho said the case will be referred to the coroner for further investigation.
As of the latest bulletin, 10,298 patients were being treated at public hospitals and infection control centres.
Among them, 30 are in critical condition, 24 are in serious condition, and 79 are in intensive care.
A total of 1,473 recovered patients were discharged from hospitals in the past 24 hours.
