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HK records 10 new Covid-19 cases, all but 1 imported

Posted on 01 October 2020 No comments

By The SUN

2 Filipina DHs who flew in separately are among the 10 new cases today (File)


Two Filipina domestic workers - one newly arrived, and another under quarantine - were among 10 new Covid-cases recorded in Hong Kong today, Oct 1. 

Nine of the cases are imported, while the sole local one is a 26-year-old female visitor from Thailand who had been in Hong Kong since mid-March and had stayed in various hotels in Kowloon before testing positive. Her case of infection is unknown.

Another local case is a male nurse at Queen Elizabeth Hospital who felt unwell on Sept 28, and tested preliminary positive after going for a consultation on Sept 30. Health authorities say there was no evidence he caught the virus in the hospital.

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The new confirmed cases brought the city’s tally to 5,097, with 105 related deaths.

The newly arrived Filipina DH who is 42 years old, flew in via Philippine Airlines flight PR 300 on Sept 29, and was confirmed positive at the airport.

The other one, who is 35 years old, came in aboard Cathay Pacific CX 906 on Sept 22, and tested negative on arrival. But while during quarantine at Harbour Bay Hotel in Tsim Sha Tsui she felt unwell and a test showed her infected.

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The biggest number of imported cases came from Britain. The five passengers, aged between 18 and 56, all tested positive on arrival at the airport. Three of them came aboard a direct Cathay flight from London, but traveled separately. The others flew in aboard a Turkish Airlines flight.

The surge in the number of returnees from Britain came just a day before all travelers from the country were required to present a negative result for Covid-19, and stay in hotels during the mandatory 14-day quarantine.

Britain became the 11th country to be designated by Hong Kong as “high risk” for the coronavirus.

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The two other imported cases were returnees from France and Dubai.

Dr Chuang Shuk-kwan, head of the Centre for Health Protection’s communicable disease branch, said the infected Thai visitor had spent her time shopping and dining out with two friends, who have since flown back to Thailand.

“We are still tracing her close contacts, including one or two friends [here] and two more who stayed with her in Hong Kong but have returned to Thailand already,” said Chuang, adding that Thai health authorities would be contacted for follow-up.

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Some reports say the Thai patient stayed at a guest house in Tsim Sha Tsui between August and Sept 26, when she started feeling unwell. She moved to Dorsett Kwun Tong, Hong Kong and Hotel COZi‧ Harbour View respectively between 27th September and 28th September.

All the guests and staff at the hotels will be tested for the virus.

Chuang giving an update on the Covid-19 cases at today's press briefing 


Chuang also disclosed on questioning that all 61 residents and about 70 staff at a Yuen Long elderly home where a 71-year-old resident had been found infected earlier, all tested negative for the virus.

The residents had all been evacuated from the care home while the staff were quarantined as a safety precaution.

Dr Linda Yu, chief manager at the Hospital Authority, meanwhile said the nurse who tested positive at Queen Elizabeth had not been in contact with Covid-19 patients during the incubation period.

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But six of his colleagues who had meals with him would be quarantined for 14 days.

Yu also said that only 118 infected patients remain in public hospitals, of whom 10 are critical, 8 are serious, and 100 are in stable condition.

On Wednesday night, health inspectors carried out spot checks on 19 restaurants and bars in Lan Kwai Fong, Central, to see if they were following social distancing regulations, including seating a maximum of four customers to a table, which should be at least 1.5 meters apart.

The raid led to prosecution proceedings being filed against seven business establishments.

Business owners found guilty of violating the regulations can be fined up to $50,000 and jailed for a maximum period of six months.

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HK readies new quarantine and treatment sites to brace for future Covid wave

Posted on No comments

 By The SUN

Site of the new Covid-19 hospital with 800 beds near the HK Airport 

Chief Executive Carrie Lam said another wave of the coronavirus epidemic could hit Hong Kong in the future, so the government is preparing more quarantine and treatment facilities to fight the health menace more effectively.

Lam made the statement during a visit to Penny's Bay and AsiaWorld-Expo on Lantau Island on Sept 29 to inspect various Covid-19 quarantine and community treatment facilities, as well as a temporary hospital being built on a lot adjacent to AWE.

During the visit she learned more about the completed projects and the progress of ongoing works.

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“Although the epidemic situation in Hong Kong has slightly eased recently, there are risks of another wave in the future,” Lam said.

“The government will stay vigilant and is using the time to review comprehensively all prevention and control measures, including preparing more quarantine and treatment facilities, to cope with the epidemic more effectively in the future,” she said.

She also appealed to members of the public to continue to fully comply with various social distancing measures, especially during the National Day and Mid-Autumn Festival long holidays.

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“They should maintain the awareness of epidemic prevention and maintain personal and environmental hygiene at all times to reduce the risk of the spread of the virus,” Lam said.

Lam was accompanied by the Secretary for Food and Health Sophia Chan and the Undersecretary for Development, Liu Chun-san as she inspected the newly completed Penny’s Bay Quarantine Centre Phase 2.

She toured some units, including a barrier-free unit, the medical and the command posts, and was briefed by the staff on the construction and management of the quarantine centre, which is expected to completed by the end of the year. 

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A total of 3,500 self-contained units will be available at the quarantine center, in addition to about 500 in various facilities across the territory.

Lam and the other officials then departed for AWE where she was briefed by staff members of the Architectural Services Department and the contractor on the temporary hospital to be built adjacent to the facility.

Pre-construction work on the site is under way, and the treatment facility is expected to be operational in four months. More than 800 beds will be put in place in negative pressure wards, to complement the more than 1,000 isolation beds in public hospitals.

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Lam then inspected the construction of the AWE expansion wing, including the newly built enclosed cubicle and the medical command post. Two halls in AWE were earlier retrofitted to provide room for 900 beds, in preparation for another possible outbreak.

Lam and Chan inspect the expansion wing of the AWE treatment facility

The expansion work is expected to be completed in about four weeks and provide an additional 1,000 beds.

Lam praised the construction team for their ongoing hard work in overcoming various challenges of the project to meet the needs of the new treatment facilities.

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She then proceeded to inspect the quarantine facility of the Social Welfare Department in another hall of AWE, where 640 beds have been set up for use by residents of elderly homes and care facilities for persons with disabilities, if needed.
 
Lam thanked the Central Government for supporting the expansion of the quarantine facilities and in building the temporary hospital, as well as the Guangdong Provincial Government and the Shenzhen Municipal Government for assisting with the projects.

HK records one local and 7 imported new infections, including 2 Pinays

Posted on 30 September 2020 No comments

By Vir B. Lumicao  

Paramedics evacuate residents of the Yuen Long elderly home where
today's sole local case lived (RTHK photo) 


Hong Kong reported today, Sept 30, eight new confirmed coronavirus cases, including two returning Filipina domestic helpers who tested positive on their second test. There was only one case, and it had no known source.

Today’s infections brought to 5,088 the total number of confirmed cases in the city.

The Filipinas, aged 39 and 51, were asymptomatic and were in quarantine separately in hotels in Hung Hom and Yaumatei when they were found infected, the Centre for Health Protection said. 


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The five other imported cases were a man, aged 41, from Russia; three returnees from Britain, including, a couple 66 and 64 years old and a 28-year-old woman; and a girl aged 10 from India.

Dr Chuang Shuk-kwan head of CHP’s communicable disease unit, said the lone local case was a 71-year-old woman in an elderly home in Yuen Long whose source of infection is not known.

Chuang said the woman, a resident of the Yuen Long Home for The Elderly, was admitted to hospital on Sept 28 for other reasons but was tested positive for Covid-19 the next day.

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She said the patient moved into the home only on Sept 21 after living with her family in Tsui Mei House in Kwun Tong.

The woman had dementia but was mobile, so the other residents were considered as close contacts, as were her family members, Chuang said.

She also said the case prompted the evacuation of 80 residents and staff members from the elderly home.

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“We made arrangements for the 61 residents to be admitted at the AsiaWorld Expo for quarantine. For some others, they had been admitted to hospitals for other reasons. So far, four of them have tested negative,” Chuang said.

The 19 staff members were sent to a quarantine site, she said.

Undersecretary for Food and Health, Dr Chui Tak-yi, advised relatives to avoid visiting hospitals, rehabilitation centers and care homes to avoid the risk of bringing the virus or contracting it in those places.

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Chuang said it was possible the infection happened while the elderly woman was living  in Tsui Mei and before she moved to the elderly home.

As there is a possibility that the case was a community infection, the CHP distributed sample bottles to residents of Tsui Mei house.

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Dr Linda Yu, chief manager at the Hospital Authority, said at 9am today, 20 confirmed Covid-19 patients were discharged from hospital in the last 24 hours. So far, a total of 4,827 patients with confirmed or probable infection have been discharged, she said.

A total of 120 confirmed patients are currently in 16 public hospitals. Ten of them are in critical condition, eight are in serious condition and the remaining 102 patients are in stable condition, Yu said.

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Safety protocols to stay as HK gov’t injects $5.4 billion more for hard-hit sectors

Posted on No comments

By The SUN   

CE Lam says HK does not have enough money to help everyone affected by the pandemic

Most social distancing protocols will remain in place after the Oct 1 National Day and Mid-Autumn Festival, despite the third wave of the coronavirus pandemic in Hong Kong having stabilized, Chief Executive Carrie Lam has said.

The city’s top official spoke to the media before the meeting of the Executive Council yesterday morning, Sept 29, to discuss the social distancing measures.

Hours after she spoke, Chief Secretary for Administration, Matthew Cheung said the Anti-Epidemic Fund Steering Committee approved 26 measures with $5.4 billion funding commitment from the government.

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“To provide timely assistance and relief to relevant sectors and individuals, I have asked bureaux and departments to implement the third-round measures as soon as possible,” Cheung said.

The biggest allocation of $1.67 billion will go the Catering Business Subsidy Scheme to provide relief to the businesses and individuals in the food industry suffering from the epidemic and the measures put in place to contain it.

Quarantine centers for residents of residential care homes for the elderly and residential care homes for persons with disabilities were approved for a $730 million funding.

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Quarantine facilities will have a $610 million funding while subsidy scheme to promote contactless payment in public markets will get $65 million.

Among the hardest hit sectors are the tourism industry which will get $397 million, beauty parlors, massage establishments and party rooms which will get $350 million in total, and the transport and aviation sectors that were allocated $250.2 million.

Lam said despite signs the third wave of the pandemic had stabilized, Hong Kong residents should not let their guard down and continue to observe health protocols.

HK people are warned to keep taking precautions to prevent another outbreak

“With the full resumption of face-to-face teaching, it means the third outbreak has eased and has gone stabilized,” the Hong Kong leader said.

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Lam said there was only one local case last week, but that one case could start a cluster that would lead to a community outbreak.

Giving the reporters a heads up, Lam said most of the government’s social distancing measures that expire midnight tonight, Sept 30, will continue. She said the ExCo would make a decision on the measures.

Lam said the Legislative Council Finance Committee approved on Monday a $5.4 billion injection to the Anti-Epidemic Fund and other relevant initiatives such as procurement of vaccines and allocation to the hospital Authority.

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She said that together with a waiver of government fees and rates, total relief measures amounted to about $24 billion. After the relief measures, along with the spending for the latest round, the government has spent about $300 billion.

“There are indeed limitations in our financial support,” Lam said, citing what legislators of various parties said that not all needy sectors received relief from the government.

She said the government will not rely on using more public funds to revive the economy but has adopted a new line of thinking to help businesses and individuals in a new way.

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Lam said the government is in discussions with authorities in Guangdong over plans to use nucleic acid testing on cross-border passengers and waive the 14-day quarantine requirement in order to allow negative-tested individuals into the city.

But she said this must be done gradually with priority to be given to Hong Kong people who are stranded on the mainland who may need to see their doctors here or be with relatives whom they have not seen for a long time.

Macau, which has become virus-free, has just recently opened its borders with China.

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Limit of stay for FDHs unable to go home because of pandemic extended anew

Posted on No comments

 By The SUN

 FDWs stranded in HK because of the coronavirus spread will benefit from the new measure 

The Immigration Department has again extended deadlines for foreign domestic workers who are unable to go home because of the coronavirus pandemic, including those who are normally required to take a home leave after renewing their contracts.

Under the new “flexibility arrangement” announced today, Sept 30, by Immigration, those who have renewed their visas can now to stay in Hong Kong continuously for up to nearly the end of their contract period of 24 months.

Today’s announcement says: “If the FDHs concerned who have already been granted further extension of stay…(i.e. the total extension of limit of stay amounts to not more than 21 months) wish to further defer their home leave, the ImmD will, on individual case merits, consider exercising discretion to grant them a further extension of limit of stay for not more than three months.”

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Normally, the home leave extension is granted for no longer than one year from the date of signing the renewal contract.

Extension of stay will also be granted in the following situations:

1) Those with expiring contracts: All FDH contracts that will expire on or before Dec 31, 2020, can apply for an extension up to January 31 next year as long as both the employer and the worker agree. The same rule will apply even to those whose contracts had already been extended previously.

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2) Those on visitor’s visa: FDHs whose existing contracts are due to expire or are terminated on or before Dec 31 may apply to have their visas extended for a maximum period of one month “as visitors for the purpose of finding a new employer in Hong Kong, if they are unable to return to their place of origin due to the pandemic in their place of origin and/or international travel restrictions arising from the pandemic.” The same rule will apply to those who had already been granted a visa extension previously, for the purpose of finding a new employment in Hong Kong. But Immigration says it will exercise discretion in granting extensions to guard against abuse.

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3) Those renewing contracts: Those who also intend to apply to postpone going    home after their work contract is approved, may submit both the application for deferral of home leave and contract renewal at the same time. This process can be done at the same time even before the normally prescribed period of eight weeks before the expiration of the existing contract. Employers are, however, reminded to arrange for their FDWs to return to their place of origin for vacation within the allowed extension.

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The statement said Immigration has been fast-tracking the processing of employment visa applications, especially for those who want to change employers after finishing their previous works contracts.

Immigration warns 'job hoppers' will be sent home 

While the faster processing also applies to those with terminated contracts, Immigration warned that it will keep an eye on those who abuse the system by engaging in “job hopping,” or the practice of repeatedly changing employers at whim.

The statement said that applications from terminated workers will be closely checked for the number of and reasons for their premature contract termination in the last 12 months.

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“For suspected "job-hopping" cases, the ImmD will refuse the employment visa applications and require the applicants to leave Hong Kong,” said the statement.

While the faster processing also applies to those with terminated contracts, Immigration warned that it will keep an eye on those who abuse the system by engaging in “job hopping,” or the practice of repeatedly changing employers at whim. 

This is the fourth time that  Immigration has extended the period of stay of FDWs caught up in travel restrictions because of the coronavirus contagion. The same relief measures were granted on Feb. 4, Mar. 19 and Jun 30.

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Showers, pandemic protocols seen to dim Mid-Autumn festivities

Posted on 29 September 2020 No comments

By Vir B. Lumicao 

Brightly colored lanterns used to light up Victoria Park at this time of the year (File) 

Showers, thunderstorms and gathering restrictions due to the coronavirus contagion will dampen the city’s double celebration of the Mid-Autumn Festival and the National Day on Oct 1.

The Leisure and Cultural Services Department said today, Sept 29, that in view of the Covid-19 pandemic, the traditional Mid-Autumn lantern carnivals and lantern displays held at Victoria Harbour, Tai Po Waterfront Park, Tsing Yi Park and Hong Kong Cultural Centre Piazza have been cancelled this year.

It’s the first time in recent memory that the traditional spectacles have been called off.

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Revelers will also miss the Causeway Bay Fire Dragon Dance in Tai Hang, an annual parade that started in 1880 and is considered the biggest of the several fire dragon spectacles in Hong Kong during the festival.

At about this time, the Mid-Autumn decorations would have been hung at Victoria Park, the focal point for the annual celebrations. But the gaily lit lanterns are all gone from the park this year, adding to the bleak atmosphere brought on by the cloudy and wet weather, which the Hong Kong Observatory said will continue Wednesday and Thursday.

But expect the weather to improve over the weekend and usher in cooler days next week, said the Observatory.

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Despite the gloomy forecast, Hongkongers are likely to continue to observe long-held traditions such as family barbecues on private rooftops, dinners at home with relatives, and moon-watching in parks or beaches if ever the sky clears.

The LCSD said it will extend opening hours and make special arrangements at some of its venues, including parks, for the public to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival.

On Oct 1, the Mid-Autumn Festival, the LCSD will extend by half an hour the opening hours of the Eastern District’s Aldrich Bay Park, which takes pride in its water feature and Fisherman Hut Pavilion. The park will be open from 6.30am to 11pm. 

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On Oct 1, Hong Kong Velodrome Park in Sai Kung District, which features an artificial lake, will open from 6.30am to 2am, an extension of three hours. On Oct, and 2, the day after the festival, the park will open at 6.30am and close at 1am, a two-hour extension.

People are still expected to gather at Victoria Park and other open spaces around Hong Kong to share mooncakes and display their lanterns. But on Oct 2 and 3, the park’s central lawn will be closed from 1am to 2am for cleaning operations, the LCSD said.

In view of the pandemic, the LCSD has appealed to everyone to observe the ban on group gatherings of more than four people in public venues to reduce the chances of spreading the virus. 

LCSD warns people not to enter roped-in beaches and barbecue pits as they remain off-limits 

The department also urged revelers not to enter closed leisure facilities such as public beaches and barbecue sites. They are also not allowed to burn wax, fly sky lanterns or litter at the venues, the LCSD said.

Police will step up patrols at popular venues and remind the public to observe the limit on group gatherings and to wear masks in public places. Enforcement actions will be taken against violators, it said. 

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Meanwhile, the Hospital Authority said that 13 general out-patient clinics will provide services on Oct 1 and 2, but it reminded the public to make advance bookings for appointments either through the Telephone Appointment System or the “Book GOPC” function in its “HA Go” mobile application.

A spokesman said the accident and emergency departments in public hospitals will also operate as usual during the holidays to serve patients with urgent medical needs.

The Transport Department said special traffic and transport arrangements will be implemented on Oct 1.

The MTR, franchised buses, trams, green minibuses and ferries will maintain their normal service hours. The major public transport operators may strengthen the services as demand requires and some special bus services will be operated, the TD said.

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