24 new Covid-19 cases recorded; 10 linked to gym outbreak

By Vir B. Lumicao 

All 3 campuses of The Harbour School were shut after 3 teachers tested positive (File)

Ten more people linked to a gym in Sai Ying Pun were among 24 new Covid-19 cases recorded today, Mar 14, and health officials warned the cluster could grow bigger, as the coronavirus has an incubation period of 14 days.

“We have to be mindful and need to closely monitor the situation to see if there are further transmissions arising from this cluster,” Dr Albert Au from the Centre for Health Protection said at today’s press briefing.

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Au said the new cases had raised the number of confirmed infections from Ursus Fitness to 109. Ten preliminary positive cases are also linked to the outbreak.

The number of close contacts had also gone up to 750, and Au said the CHP would move all of them to quarantine centers.

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Mandatory testing will also be carried out on 1,900 people at seven schools where patients in the Ursus cluster either work or study.

Of today’s 10 additional patients from the Ursus cluster, six were customers and four were close contacts, said Au.

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Two confirmed and one preliminary positive cases were found at The Harbour School’s Grove campus in Ap Lei Chau today, all of them teachers.

Au said the first patient shared a classroom with the second case, a fellow IT teacher. The third case is an art teacher who had a brief, 10-minute contact with the IT teacher.

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“So we believe that the transmission is person to person and happened inside the IT room,” said Au.

All 35 students and six assistant teaching staff in two IT classes at Harbour School need to undergo quarantine and testing.

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The school said on its website that all of its three campuses  - at Belcher’s Street in Kennedy Town and on Lee Chi Road and Ap Lei Chai Bridge in Ap Lei Chau, have been closed and students will be doing virtual classes.

The youngest among today’s confirmed cases was a 5-year-old female K-2 pupil at Sun Island English Kindergarten in Yuen Long, Au said. The girl, who lives in Shek Au Wai, developed a symptom on Mar 6 and was confirmed positive on Saturday.

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Au said the girl’s father, aged 49, is also among the 20 preliminary positive cases. The father had an onset of the disease on Mar 13 and was found during contact tracing.

“So far, we have located three teachers and 14 students as close contacts who will be sent to quarantine,” Au said.

The tally of confirmed cases in Hong Kong is now 11,281, with the death toll at 203.

Kingsfield Tower in Pokfulam has been locked down overnight 

Meanwhile, the government began ambush lockdowns this evening in the upscale areas of Pok Fu Lam and Old Peak Road on Hong Kong Island to carry out compulsory testing of residents in several buildings there.

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The government said that residents of Block A and B, Kingsfield Tower, 64-68 Pok Fu Lam Road/73-83 Bonham Road; Fung Lam Bldg, 35-37 Pok Fu Lam Road; Tung Ming Court, 39 Pok Fu Lam Road; Lee Wai Bldg, 41-43 Pok Fu Lam Road; and 63 Pok Fu Lam Road in Central and Western District are required to stay in their premises and undergo compulsory testing.

The lockdown was prompted by a confirmed case in Kingsfield Tower recently and sewage samples that tested positive in Fung Lam Bldg, Tung Ming Court, Lee Wai Bldg and 63 Pok Fu Lam Road, the government said.

A similar lockdown was put in place from 7pm today to 7am tomorrow on Towers 1 to 5, Dynasty Court, 23 Old Peak Road in Central and Western District. .

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Mid-Levels lockdown ends with no Covid-19 cases found

By The SUN 

Around 370 govt staff were tapped to do the testing for the Mid-Levels residents

An overnight lockdown of four ritzy housing blocks on Mid-Levels resulted in 1,855 people being tested for Covid-19, but with no confirmed cases found.

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Locked down from around 8:30pm Saturday until 9am Sunday were blocks 1 and 2 of Robinson Place on Robinson Road, as well as phases 1 and 2 of Blessings Garden on Conduit Road. Around 980 household were covered by the lockdown.

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Anyone who spent more than two hours in the buildings between Feb 28 and Mar 13 was ordered to undergo coronavirus tests, even if they were absent during the lockdown.

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The move was taken after a surge in Covid-19 cases in Central and Western Districts, most of them linked to the outbreak in Ursus Fitness in Sai Ying Pun, where 99 infections had been linked as of Saturday morning.

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According to a press statement from the government, the operation was completed at 11am, and 16 persons were found to have violated the compulsory testing order. They were each issued a fixed penalty ticket of $5,000 and told to get tested.

The operation ended with no positive cases being found

No one answered the door at around 150 households, and the government advised people living in the said flats to contact the government to arrange for tests as soon as possible. =

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The government said simple food was provided for those subject to compulsory testing. They were also provided with masks, bleach, hand sanitizer and other anti-virus protective gear.

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Separately, compulsory testing orders were imposed on residents and visitors of 64 buildings across Hong Kong overnight. 

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The list included 13 blocks in Sai Ying Pun where the gym outbreak was detected, and where sewage samples showed the presence of coronavirus.

The order covered everyone who had spent at least two hours in the specified buildings in the last two weeks.

All but eight of the buildings on the list were on Hong Kong Island, and most were in Central and Western district.

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Covid-19 cases in gym rises to 99, including 3 Filipinos

By Daisy CL Mandap 

The 3 Filipinos from the Ursus gym cluster are being treated at this Lantau facility

The number of Covid-19 cases linked to a Sai Ying Pun gym continues to grow, with 35 of the 47 new infections reported today, Mar 13, being linked to the cluster.

Dr Chuang Shuk-kwan from the Centre for Health Protection said at today’s press briefing that the total number of cases from the Ursus Fitness cluster has now grown to 99, only four days since the first infection was detected.

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Those found infected are 7 staff members, 75 customers and 17 close contacts of patients.

The new infections were broken down into 25 customers and 10 close contacts. Chuang said they mostly tested positive at the quarantine centers, although some sought treatment after developing symptoms.

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Sources told The SUN that among those who tested positive were three Filipinos: a male trainer, a female receptionist, and a female customer or student at Ursus, who were all moved to Penny’s Bay quarantine centre on Thursday, where they were found infected.

All three were reportedly asymptomatic or had mild symptoms, so they were all sent to North Lantau District Hospital for treatment.

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Most of those infected were, however, local Chinese and some expatriates working as bankers, lawyers, accountants and teachers.

Chuang said it might be a good idea to suggest work-from-home arrangement for the offices where confirmed cases were found, in response to a reporter’s query.

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“Of course, if the offices can arrange work from home, it’s a better social distancing measure than gathering in the office,” said Chuang. “(Because) if there is one case in the office, we might have to issue compulsory testing notice for all the workers there and also may quarantine some close contacts.”

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The compulsory testing list released yesterday showed a total of 80 places where residents and staff need to undergo Covid-19 testing, and they included two floors of HSBC’s headquarters in Central, and the offices of Shearman & Sterling in Central, Credit Suisse in Kowloon, and Ernst & Young in Kowloon.

Staff on 2 floors of HSBC's headquarters are among those ordered to go for testing

Also included was the elite Kellett School on the Peak, where those affected were primary students aged between 9 and 10 years old. Chuang said CHP had initially considered sending the kids to quarantine, but after learning that they had worn face masks during classes, the testing order was put in place instead.

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Chuang said 53 more places would be put under mandatory testing today, comprising 32 residential buildings and 21 workplaces. The order is issued to all residents and visitors in each place where at least one confirmed case of Covid-19 is detected.

Today’s confirmed cases linked to Ursus was that involving a female trainer at another gym, One PT, who tested preliminary positive yesterday. Chuang said further investigation showed the patient had been to Ursus during the incubation period.

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Of the 12 other cases detected today, 4 were imported, and all were found to carry the highly infectious coronavirus variant, N501Y. One flew in from Pakistan, two from the Netherlands, and one from several places, including the United Arab Emirates.

Chuang said they brought to 75 the total number of variant carriers found in Hong Kong.

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Of the eight local cases not linked to Ursus, four were of unknown sources, including one who had been to Pure Fitness gym in late February, and developed a sore throat on Mar 1. The gym has been listed among gyms where some Ursus customers had gone to.

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Harassment victims can now apply for court injunction, leading lawyer says

By Vir B. Lumicao 

Harris' article gives hope to migrant workers who suffer harassment by various people

Migrant domestic workers who are helplessly suffering from harassment by other people may now be able to apply for an injunction from Hong Kong courts as long as they can support their application with credible evidence.

This is according to a veteran barrister who has shed light on this legal remedy in his article, “Anti-harassment injunctions,” in the January 2021 issue of the journal “Hong Kong Lawyer.” 

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Paul Harris, SC, said applicants could include those targeted by various forms of harassment such as cyber bullying, stalking, “doxing” (or exposing somebody’s personal details) and intimidation on social media. 

“Harassment by a debt collector, a landlord, a former business associate, or indeed a present or former spouse, is tackled legally by application for an interlocutory injunction restraining the defendant from the conduct described in the injunction order,” wrote Harris.

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Harris, who currently chairs the Hong Kong Bar Association, is a public law and human rights specialist who has considerable experience in civil litigation in Hong Kong and in London.

The discussion of this legal remedy comes at an opportune time for the estimated 370,000 foreign domestic helpers in the city, many of whom are subjected to harassment by various people, including debt collectors, long-time enemies and former lovers seeking revenge.

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One such victim is a Filipina helper who sought help from the police recently after she was allegedly harassed, shamed, blackmailed and bullied on cyberspace and in person by her former boyfriend, an Indian torture claimant.

Harris said harassment victims can apply for an injunction supported by an affidavit giving detailed evidence of the alleged acts. It should be accompanied by a draft of the order that the victim is seeking  from the court.

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He suggested an urgent hearing be requested as failure to do this may lead the court to conclude the problem is not as serious as alleged and could refuse the relief sought. But the chances of securing a favorable judgment are now better than before.

“There used to be legal difficulties in relation to securing an interlocutory injunction specifically against harassment but these have been greatly reduced by case-law developments in recent years,” Harris said.

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He said the applicant must have a cause of action against the person who is the target of the injunction. 

There is no legal difficulty if the harassment involves assault or trespass, but it could be a problem if there was no such incident, and the act complained of was done by a person with whom the victim had no contractual relationship.

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He said the harassment could be in the form of nuisance phone calls, threats, embarrassing a person at their place of work to put pressure on him, falsely ordering goods or services in a person’s name, stalking and abuse of personal information, such as “doxing.”

Nuisance calls can give rise to a court injunction against the party behind them 

Some of these forms of harassment breach personal privacy, which is protected under article 14 of the Bill of Rights, said Harris. Thus, it would be possible for a victim to bring a judicial review against the government's failure to adequately protect her or his rights.

Harris said while England’s Protection from Harassment Act 1997 “introduced both a crime of harassment and a statutory tort of harassment with provision for the grant of injunctions to prevent it,” Hong Kong does not have any equivalent legislation.

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Nevertheless, Hong Kong courts have developed a common law tort of harassment to meet the gap in law that would otherwise exist.

“It can therefore now safely be said that the tort of harassment exists at least to the extent that it is available to as a basis for the grant of an interlocutory injunction. There is therefore now a remedy for all forms of harassment,” Harris said.

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But he said the court will only grant an injunction if the application is supported by credible evidence. Thus, where the harassment consists of a large number of repetitious acts, the victim should keep a diary of these events as proof and attach this as an exhibit to the affidavit. 

For harassment in the form of nuisance phone calls, the victim’s phone billing records should be obtained and produced. If it was a criminal damage, criminal intimidation or assault, a police report should be made, and the record of the police report shown.

Those who might need help in taking legal action could get in touch with the Hong Kong Law Society through its website: https://www.hklawsoc.org.hk/pub_e/popup/20130515/20150602.pdf or call its hotlline: 8200 8002.    

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60 new Covid-19 cases recorded, 47 of them linked to gym

By Daisy CL Mandap

The number of cases at Ursus Fitness has now grown to 64

Health authorities have ordered everyone working in gyms to get tested for coronavirus by Sunday, as the number of infections from a Sai Ying Pun fitness center grew to 64  within just three days.

Dr Chuang Shuk-kwan from the Centre for Health Protection said at today’s press briefing that the number of cases from Ursus Fitness on Pokfulam Road could rise further, as some of about 20 preliminary positive cases are also linked to the gym.

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Chuang said that of the 60 new Covid-19 cases recorded as of today, Mar 12,  54 were locally acquired and six were imported. Of the 54 local cases, 47 cases were linked to Ursus, comprising 40 customers and 7 close contacts.

Including the 17 cases recorded on Wednesday and Thursday, there are now a total of 64 infections detected from this cluster. They include 7 staff, 50 customers and 7 close contacts.

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Chuang said the new infections were detected from among 240 close contacts from the gym who were sent to quarantine centers earlier. As of today, the number of those in quarantine centers has grown to 360, with 450 others ordered to undergo testing.

Earlier, health authorities also mandated that everyone who goes to a gym should wear a mask at all times, except when taking a shower, or eating and drinking.

The mandatory testing order was issued following the discovery that most of those infected had gone to various fitness clubs across Hong Kong island.

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Among those Chuang mentioned were Pure Fitness (with branches in Central and Wanchai), Ultimate Fitness, H Core (Central and Taikoo), Optimum Performance, H.I.T, House of Fitness, Athletic Club and Pure Yoga.

“We have a lot of cases where people go to work, so we want details (of possible infections) as soon as possible,” she said, adding that among those infected were bankers and lawyers, aside from teachers.

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She also mentioned that among the preliminary positive cases is a 34-year-old female fitness trainer who works in One PT on Pottinger Street in Central who last went to work on Mar 10.

But she said the CHP has yet to find out if the case is related to Ursus.

On being asked if the gym outbreak could indicate the start of the fifth wave of infections, Chuang said she did not want to see it as such. However, since a lot of people are involved, there is indication the virus had been spreading for a long time.

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She said investigations have indicated that the virus spread from person to person because many of the customers did not wear masks while doing intense workouts, plus they went to the gym repeatedly during the incubation period.

The first patient to report the earliest onset was said to be a gym customer, who had symptoms on Mar 6. Most of the other confirmed patients reported having symptoms by Mar 10 or 11.

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But Chuang said this did not mean that the customer was the index patient because there could have been a silent transmission going on, meaning an asymptomatic person could have started the spread of the virus.

Among the seven other confirmed local cases were a 12-year-old female student, a security guard, a staff at Enterprise Square Tower in Kowloon Bay, and  an attendant at an exhibition centre in Tseung Kwan O.

CHP says it's not clear if the preliminary case from One PT is linked to Ursus 

Apart from the fitness trainer at One PT, the preliminary cases include a man working in the maintenance department of Hong Kong Sanatorium, and a woman who gave birth at Queen Elizabeth on Mar 4 who was found infected only after repeated tests.

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The six imported cases included two newly arrived foreign domestic workers from Indonesia, one of whom tested positive on her 12^th day in quarantine; another DH as well as two returnees from India; and an air crew who flew in after traveling through various countries, including the United States and Japan.

Chuang said one of the imported cases had the highly infections coronavirus variant, but did not indicate who the patient was.

Hong Kong’s total Covid-19 tally is now 11,211 but only 206 confirmed patients are still confined in public hospitals and the treatment facility in North Lantau District Hospital.

Linda Yu, a chief manager of the Hospital Authority, said all patients at the community treatment facility at AsiaWorld Expo have been moved to North Lantau hospital as of this morning.

The AWE facility, which was used to treat more than 3,000 patients who were either asymptomatic or had mild symptoms, will be on standby in case of any future need.

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