2 former CX flight crew charged with violating pandemic restrictions

By The SUN 

CE Lam said the two air crew members left on passenger flight and returned aboard a cargo plane

Two former flight attendants of Cathay Pacific have been arrested and charged in court for violating the government’s anti-Covid regulations (Cap 599A).

A statement released by the government late Monday night said the two accused, while employed by the airline as flight attendants, arrived in Hong Kong on Dec 24 and 25, 2021, respectively.

PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE

“During medical surveillance, they had conducted unnecessary activities in contravention of Cap 599A on Dec 25 and 21, 2021 respectively. They were both subsequently tested positive for Covid-19 Omicron variant, and have been discharged from hospital upon completion of treatment.”

At her regular press briefing today, Nov 18, Chief Executive Carrie Lam confirmed the arrests, and said the two had left Hong Kong on a passenger flight and returned on a cargo flight to gain quarantine exemption.

PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE

She added that the government is conducting an investigation to see if Cathay Pacific breached any rules by allowing for such an arrangement to take place.

Earlier this month, Cathay announced that it fired the two air crew members on suspicion of breaking Covid protocols during their medical surveillance period.

CONTACT US!

Health officials have said the two met up on Dec 25 at the home of the second air crew member who had proceeded there after testing negative at the airport.

On Dec 27, the second crew member had lunch with two relatives in Kowloon Tong, and in the process infected a couple of diners. He also went to a pharmacy where he passed on the virus to the unvaccinated proprietor, and indirectly to several other people.

PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE

The government press release said the pair has been released on bail and will appear again on Feb 9 at Tuen Mun and Eastern courts, respectively.

HK orders pet cull amid fears hamsters have passed on Covid-19 to humans

By Daisy CL Mandap 

11 hamsters sold in a Causeway Bay pet shop tested positive for Covid-19

Hong Kong has ordered the cull of more than 2,000 small animals after finding a batch of hamsters that tested positive for Covid-19 with the Delta variant, the same type of strain that was found in a 23-year-old female sales staff at a pet shop in Causeway Bay.

Health officials also revealed at a press conference this afternoon that a 67-year-old woman who had visited the shop briefly to buy a pet from the sales staff has also tested positive for the Delta variant. Her husband who has never been to the shop, has tested preliminary positive.

Speaking at the press conference, Health Secretary Prof. Sophia Chan said that officials from the Agriculture and Fisheries Conservation Department had tested animals in the Causeway Bay shop, and 11 were found infected with the coronavirus, all of them hamsters.

PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE

A team of experts also took environmental samples from the Tai Po warehouse of the pet chain which has 15 branches all over Hong Kong, and a number of them tested positive for Covid-19. The results of the tests on the animals there are still pending.

“Although internationally there is no evidence yet that pets can pass on the virus to humans, we must take precautionary measures to minimize the risks,” Chan said.

As a result of these findings, AFCD Secretary Leung Siu-Fai announced that the following measures will be taken:

PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE

1)     All animals at the Causeway Bay shop and the Tai Po warehouse will be put down.

2)     All pet shops must stop selling hamsters and all those that were flown to Hong Kong from the Netherlands on Dec 22 and Jan 7 and sold to the public will be seized and similarly killed.

3)     All small animals, including chinchilla, rabbits and guinea pigs that are on sale will be tested, and until they test negative, no pet shops will be allowed to sell them.

4)     The AFCD will stop the importation of small animals into Hong Kong and ask exporting countries to conduct tests on the pets to ensure there is no unseen transmission going on among them.

Officials say putting down the animals is necessary to stop possible spread to humans

Dr Edwin Hui, controller of the Centre for Health Protection, said they were considering two possible sources of transmission within the pet shop. One was that the sales staff had passed on the virus to the customer, even though their interaction was brief and they both wore masks.

“But we are not ruling out the possibility that there was a direct transmission from animals to humans,” Hui said.

CHP’s infectious disease chief Dr Chuang Shuk-kwan said a total of 143 transactions were made in the pet shop chain from Dec 22 and 121 of the customers have already been traced. The rest did not provide contact telephone numbers.

CONTACT US!

Hui said that because there have been at least two cases of human infections in the shop, all those who bought animals there during the relevant dates will be contacted so they could surrender their pets for testing before being put down. 

Regardless of the result, the pet owners will be sent to quarantine. 

All those who had been to the pet shop from Jan 7-15 are also being contacted. At least one man has reported on social media that he would be sent to quarantine tonight when he was at the shop for less than an hour.

Meanwhile, all shops selling hamsters have been told to close, and surrender the animals to the authorities to be put down.

PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE

Asked if it was humane to put down 2,000 small animals when only a small number were found to carry the virus, the officials pointed out that this was the first time that Covid-19 was found among hamsters in a natural setting. That indicates they could easily pass it on among themselves and to other animals, even humans.

Vaccine bubble may start as early as Feb 4, says CE

By The SUN 

CE says businesses may reopen on Feb 4 but only under a vaccine bubble

Hong Kong’s plan to introduce the so-called vaccine bubble, in which only fully vaccinated people will be allowed into certain premises like restaurants, may start as early as Feb 4, instead of Feb 24 as originally planned.

This was what Chief Executive Carrie Lam said at a press conference held this morning, Jan 18, before the weekly meeting of the Executive Council.

PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE

Mrs Lam said that the current round of social distancing measures which include a ban on dine-in at restaurants after 6pm and the closure of bars, karaoke, beauty parlors and other venues, will end on Feb. 4 only if the number of Covid-19 cases remain steady.

If businesses are reopened then this could only be under the vaccine bubble arrangement.

PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE

“One of the arrangements we could consider after this round of social distancing measures is to allow business to operate under a vaccine bubble,” she said.

“As a result of that suggestion, of course, we are already seeing an increase – I won’t call it as a surge – but an increase in vaccination amongst the population, especially among the older population which is to be welcomed.”

Even theme parks may restrict entry only to those who are fully vaccinated

She said the vaccination figure has gone up in the last eight to 10 days. Yesterday, close to 18,000 people had their first shot of a Covid-19 vaccine. She is hoping the rate will go up to 20,000 daily.

She is most concerned about the low vaccination rate among the elderly, who are among those at high risk of falling seriously ill if they contract the coronavirus. Only 27% of those aged 80 and above have taken the jab, according to her.

CONTACT US!

The city’s top leader also announced that the distribution of financial aid for businesses hard-hit by the latest round of restrictions could be released before the Chinese New Year. She said there is a need to get the funds injected into the businesses as soon as possible.

Mrs Lam also expressed concern about the continuing spread of the Omicron variant, particularly in the case of the Pakistani woman who tested positive for Covid-19 after ending her 21-day hotel quarantine.

PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE

Health officials said yesterday the patient had spread the virus to nine other people, five of them in her own household, and the other four in another family she met only briefly.

Equally alarming is the case of a 23-year-old woman working in a pet shop who was recently found to carry the Delta variant. She said Health Secretary Sophia Chan and the Director of Agriculture will hold a press conference in the afternoon to talk about this particular case.

Woman infected during quarantine spreads virus to 9 other people

By Daisy CL Mandap 

Experts found the virus on a toilet faucet, air purifier and vent in a room in Silka 

A Pakistani woman who was infected with Covid-19 while spending her 21-day quarantine in Silka Seaview Hotel in Yau Ma Tei, appears to have passed on the virus to nine other people belonging to two households.

This was revealed at the press briefing today, Jan 17, by Dr Chuang Shuk-kwan of the Centre for Health Protection.

The 43-year-old woman who was confirmed to carry the coronavirus with the Omicron variant yesterday, tested positive four days after ending her hotel quarantine.

PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE

Chuang said five of the woman’s relatives who live with her, as well as four members of a related household in Sham Shui Po, have all tested preliminary positive.

The woman had traveled to Hong Kong on Dec 20 with a child who shared her quarantine hotel. The child was picked up by a family in the second household after they left the hotel.

“It’s possible that during that occasion the family got infected,” said Chuang, who added that the child did not test positive.

Pindutin para sa detalye

CHP is now tracing the close contacts of the two families to stop the virus from spreading further.

Earlier, genome sequencing showed the virus appears to have spread among six people, including the woman, who had stayed in four rooms located on two different floors of Silka Seaview.

Experts who inspected the hotel said the virus must have spread in the corridors and infected the guests when they opened their doors.

CONTACT US!

Of the 60 samples they took from the hotel, the virus was found on some items, like an air purifier and a vent and toilet faucet in one of the rooms.

In all, seven confirmed cases of Covid-19 were reported today, four of them locally acquired.

The local infections included a 23-year-old woman working in a pet shop who carried the Delta variant, which has been overshadowed by Omicron as the dominant variant around the globe.

Chuang said the source of her infection is still unknown, and gives rise to fears that a second silent transmission of the virus is going on in the community.

PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE

The three other local cases are all linked to a 19-year-old male student who tested positive earlier. Two are family members while the third is a domestic worker. They had all been taken to a quarantine centre when they tested positive.

The new cases took Hong Kong’s total tally to 13,048, with 376 patients still being treated in hospitals.

CHP also reported detecting 40 additional Omicron cases, taking the total number to 453 cases so far.

FDH loses $10k in love & package scam

By Daisy CL Mandap 

The bundled US$100 bills that Joy's lover supposedly sent her

The trick was a very old one with just a bit of twist, but another Filipina domestic helper in Hong Kong has again fallen for it.

Joy, who declined to give her full name, had already sent HK $10,000 last Sunday, Jan 16, to a man who pretended to have sent her a box crammed-full of US$100 bills, but she was told to send $50,000 more, or the police would soon arrest her for money laundering.

Luckily, she turned to a world-wisely friend, Marilyn, who immediately advised Joy to stop doing the bidding of “Harry,” the man she had been chatting with online, and who had told her that he had sent her money but that it was held up in customs somewhere.

PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE

Marilyn took over the chat with “Harry,” and asked for proof that a package had been sent to Joy. She also threatened to contact a lawyer.

But the person on the other end was not fazed, saying “You have only a few hours left, the custom officers will get you arrested when they get to their office.”

“Don’t blame me, I have told you and I have given you the information you needed. Thanks.”

Harry sent this photo supposedly of himself, to Joy

It was only after Marilyn told “Harry” to stop “scamming and harassing” Joy, and threatened to notify the authorities about the United Kingdom-registered number (+44 7436617620) that he was using that the man stopped threatening her friend.

Marilyn got Joy to immediately contact Hang Seng Bank to inform it about the two account numbers given by her online lover to which she was supposed to send the money. One is in the name of someone who sounded Chinese, and another to a Filipino man.

The bank, in turn, told them to report the incident to the police so they could cooperate in apprehending the culprits, especially those holding the accounts in Hong Kong.

Pindutin para sa detalye

According to Marilyn, the scam happened after Joy somehow brought up her desire to build her own house in the Philippines during a chat with Harry, who sent her a photo supposedly showing him, along with a Cyprus-registered number: +357 95721014.

“Sinabi ni Harry na padadalhan siya ng pera na pambili ng bahay,” said Marilyn. (Harry told her he would send her money so she could buy a  house).

Soon, the man whose profile picture showed a bespectacled, clean-cut man with an engaging smile, told Joy he had sent her the money.

CONTACT US!

He even sent her pictures of a thick wad of US dollar bills inside a box, as well as a video of money being put through a bill-counting machine.

These were the same photos and videos that had been sent to a number of Filipina domestic workers who were similarly scammed by men they met only online but are somehow still being used to victimize more of them.

Shortly afterwards, Harry sent an urgent message to Joy, telling her the box had been held up in customs and she needed to send $50,000 to get it released, otherwise, the police would come and arrest her for money laundering.

“Naghanap ng pera ang kaibigan ko, mabuti $10k lang ang nakuha niya, pero nung tinakot at binigyan ng ilang oras para maghanap pa ng $50k doon na ako tinawagan kasi sinabihan siya na ipapupulis siya,” said Marilyn.

PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE

(My friend scampered to look for money. Luckily she managed to raise only $10,000, but when she was threatened and given only a few hours to look for $50,000 she decided to call me because she was told the police would be called to arrest her).

Harry gave a Hang Seng Bank account number in the name of a man surnamed Luo to where Joy should send money. Later, when she was threatened unless she sent more money, she was given another Hang Seng account in the name of a Filipino surnamed Ledesma.

Harry's threat, along with the bank details of R Ledesma

After taking over the chat, Marilyn threatened Harry that they had recorded all his conversations with Joy, and would forward them to the authorities.

This appeared to unnerve Harry, enough for him to revert to his previously solicitous tone in addressing Joy.

“Hello, honey. How are you? My lawyer is handling the case now,” he said in a string of messages.

“Send me those screenshot information that the diplomats sent to you…”

But after being warned and ignored repeatedly, Harry blocked Joy from his phone contacts, and also deleted the profile photo he was using.

Marilyn and Joy hope the matter will not end here. They want other Filipinas to know what happened so they will be more wary of engaging people they do not know or have not even seen in person, lest they also be scammed.

Needless to say, Joy is also hoping the bank would find a way to give her money back.

Untraceable case with Delta variant among 11 new Covid-19 cases

By The SUN

 

Chuang says they're 'very very worried' about the new Delta case

A residential building in Aberdeen has been locked down overnight, after health officials reported its first local case with the Delta variant in their daily press briefing today, Jan 16.

The case involving a 23-year-old woman who works at the Little Boss pet shop in Causeway Bay, was one of the preliminary positive cases of Covid-19 reported on Sunday.

Dr Chuang Shuk-kwan of the Centre for Health Protection said during the briefing that the case is causing concern that an unknown transmission of Delta is going on in the community at the same time as the more infectious Omicron variant.

PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE

“There may be a Delta strain circulating, so it’s not only restricted to the Omicron cases we detected recently. So of course we are very, very worried if there are other cases of infections that have not been detected,” Chuang said.

“As for the source of her infection, we’re still investigating.”

Initial investigations showed the patient developed a cough on Jan 4 but did not seek medical help. The night before she went to have a hotpot dinner with a friend.

On Jan 5 she again had dinner with a friend, and on Jan 10 stayed overnight in a hotel in Wanchai before having another meal with friends. She had herself tested only when she started coughing and had a sore throat.

PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE

Chuang again reminded the public to immediately seek medical help if they develop symptoms to stop the spread of the virus.

The CHP reported 11 new confirmed cases today, eight of them imported.

One locally detected case, that of a 74-year-old man living in City Garden, North Point, is linked to the dance cluster that started with a Cathay flight stewardess who infected family members after arriving from the United States.

CONTACT US!

Two were classified as possibly import-related case. One involves a female aircraft cabin cleaner and the other, a Pakistani housewife who is believed to have been infected during her 21-day quarantine at Silka Seaview Hotel in Yau Ma Tei.

Chuang said genomic sequencing tests carried out at PolyTechnic University showed the case of the aircraft cleaner tallied with those from recent arrivals from Finland, United States and other places.

The case of the Pakistani housewife, on the other hand, is linked to those of five other guests who stayed in four different rooms on two separate floors at Silka Seaview.

Yuen says the virus must have spread in Silka when the guests opened their doors

Microbiologist Yuen Kwok-yung who was among those who inspected the hotel this afternoon said the virus may have spread through the corridors when the guests opened their doors.

Including today’s new confirmed cases, Hong Kong’s total Covid-19 tally has gone up to 13,041.

CHP announced in a separate statement that starting tomorrow, it will conduct a special arrangement under which those who have finished the 14 days of quarantine at quarantine centre (except inbound travelers covered by Cap. 599E) will be tested for the virus. If they test negative, they will be allowed to leave the quarantine centre in a gradual and orderly manner.

Pindutin para sa detalye

This means, those presently undergoing 21 days of quarantine will have their stay shortened for one to seven days. Afterwards, they will have to undergo self-monitoring at home for the remaining days of their original quarantine period.

“Though they will not be prohibited from going out during self-monitoring, they should monitor their health conditions, maintain social distance with other people and avoid social gatherings,” said the statement.

PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE

“They are also subject to testing at a community testing centre on Day 19, counting from the last day of exposure to the case tested positive.”

 CHP also announced that passenger flight UO705 operated by Hong Kong Express Airways from Bangkok, Thailand, will be suspended for two weeks, or until Jan 29, after one of its passengers on Jan 14 tested positive on arrival and another failed to comply with boarding requirements.

Health officials suspect six cross-infections in Silka Seaview Hotel

By The SUN 

Experts believe the virus spread among six guests at Silka Seaview 

Hong Kong health officials said tonight, Jan 16, that they are investigating an apparent cross-infections among six inbound travelers who had spent their compulsory quarantine at Silka Seaview Hotel in Yau Ma Tei.

The investigation was sparked by the case of a Pakistani housewife who tested positive for Covid-19 with the Omicron strains four days after ending her 21-day quarantine at the hotel on Jan 10. She was one of 11 new confirmed cases reported today.

In its report released tonight, the Centre for Health Protection (CHP) said that it is investigating a possible link among cases 12891, 12893, 12895, 12981 and 12994 to 13045, which pertains to the Pakistani national.

PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE

All of the patients in these cases stayed at Silka Seaview between Dec 20 and Jan 4.

Cases 12893 and 12895 both arrived in Hong Kong on Jan 2 and stayed in room 413. They both tested positive on Jan. 6.

Case 12994 arrived in Hong Kong on Dec 25 and stayed in the adjacent room, 414, on the same floor, and tested positive on January 10.

PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE

According to CHP, genome sequencing done by the public laboratory of the Department of Health shows the three cases have highly similar genetic sequences, suggesting that they are “very likely to be epidemiologically linked.”

Meanwhile, case 12891 arrived in Hong Kong on Jan 4 and stayed in room 1205, and tested positive on Jan 6.

The person who stayed in the room with him, case 12981,was sent to a quarantine centre on Jan 8 and tested positive on Jan. 9.

CONTACT US!

Lastly, case 13045 arrived in Hong Kong on Dec 20 and stayed in the adjacent room, 1206. She tested negative in all tests conducted during quarantine. After her discharge on Jan 10 she went home to Tung Moon House, Tai Hang Tung Estate, 83 Tai Hang Tung Road, Sham Shui Po. In line with regulations she got tested on Jan 13 at a community testing centre and the result was positive with a heavy viral load.

The CHP said genome sequencing on the three remaining cases have yet to be completed.

Following the results of the initial genome sequencing government experts conducted a site inspection of the hotel late this afternoon. They concluded that the air flows in the rooms and corridors may have caused the virus to spread from room to room.

PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE

Based on the expert opinion, the CHP will order compulsory quarantine for 14 days on persons who had stayed in the rooms adjacent to and opposite to room 413 from Jan 2 to 7; and those  who had stayed in the rooms adjacent to and opposite to room 1205 from Jan 4 to 8.

Starting on Jan 17, Silka Seaview was used as a quarantine hotel for close contacts of cases who tested positive for Covid-19. As such, it stopped taking reservations from inbound travelers since Jan 12, and all those who were still checked in were moved to other designated quarantine hotels.

4 Filipinas arrested in police raid on unlicensed bar in Central alley

By Daisy CL Mandap 

Police photo shows the 4 Filipinas being taken away after their arrest

Four Filipinas are still being held for investigation after being arrested Saturday night during a police raid on an unlicensed bar in Fai Man Building 9-13 Li Yuen Street West.

According to a police report, the 32-year-old Filipina who was in charge of the establishment was arrested along with three other Filipina customers found drinking in the place.

The raid which happened at 7pm, was part of an operation code-named Fanwood, which targeted bars in the area.

PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE

Under stringent anti-gathering rules that are in place until Feb. 3, bars are not allowed to open, while restaurants are prohibited from allowing customers to dine in after 6pm.

The police report said the woman who was in charge of the premises was arrested on suspicion of selling alcohol without a license, possessing unlicensed alcoholic beverages for sale, violating her visa conditions and violating the anti-gathering restrictions under Cap.599F.

PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE

The three other Filipinas, aged between 29 and 35, were arrested on suspicion of drinking alcohol in a place without a liquor license and violating Cap.599F.

Under the Prevention and Control of Diseases regulation, a fixed penalty of $5,000 may be issued for anyone found guilty of gathering in restricted places. This is on top of other penalties that may be imposed for other violations.

“All arrestees are now being held for investigation,” said the police report.

CONTACT US!

Seized during the operation were 1,645 bottles of alcohol, 12 plastic barrels and $400 cash.

Fai Man building which houses a number of pubs, karaoke bars and other businesses catering to Filipinos, is notorious for being the target of police raids aimed at flushing out illegal workers and  those engaged in illegal selling activities.

PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE

Often, police would arrest a couple of Filipinos who were either engaged in illegal selling or had violated their visa terms by working there while on torture claimants, overstayers or foreign domestic helpers status.

Restaurants in North Point, Cheung Sha Wan under compulsory testing notice

By The SUN

4 dates and times are indicated for Cafe de Coral in MaxiMall, North Point

Several restaurants in North Point and Cheung Sha Wan are among 15 places put under a compulsory testing notice issued early today, Jan. 16, by the Centre for Health Protection.

These were the places visited by a number of people who tested preliminary positive, or were confirmed to carry Covid-19 with mutant strains linked to the Omicron variant.

PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE

Among the preliminary positive cases were a female aircraft cleaner who lives in Tsing Yi and a Pakistani woman who tested positive with a heavy viral load, just days after completing her 21-day quarantine.

Also listed as a preliminary positive case is that involving a 74-year-old man who lives in City Garden in North Point. His wife was among a group of elderly women who danced together regularly in Victoria Park.

PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE

Among the eateries he appears to have patronized on a regular basis are Cafe de Coral, Fairwood and those in the Java Road Market all located in North Point 

A couple of restaurants in Cheung Sha Wan and Tsing Yi are also on the list.

CONTACT US!

Not included are the residential buildings of the cargo aircraft cleaner and Pakistani returnee which have been locked down overnight for mass testing of residents. 

They will all have to test a few more times afterwards in line with regulations concerning cases with mutant strains. 

PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE

Close contacts of the confirmed cases will be sent to a quarantine center for 14 days  

The details of the latest CTN are here: https://www.chp.gov.hk/files/pdf/ctn_20220115.pdf