HK posts 2 local, 11 imported Covid-19 cases

By Vir B. Lumicao

There are now 6 confirmed cases in Oi Fai House

Health officials today, Apr 11, confirmed 13 new coronavirus patients, two of whom are local cases linked to an outbreak in a public housing estate in Tuen Mun. Of the 11 imported cases, five carried the dreaded N501Y variant.

The Centre for Health Protection said the two local cases, a 71-year-old male retiree and a 63-year-old housewife, were relatives who live in Unit 32, Block 3, Oi Fai House in You Oi Estate in Tuen Mun. The two were earlier classified as preliminary positive.

PRESS FOR DETAILS

The man developed a sore throat and fever on Apr 7 while the woman was asymptomatic. They brought to six the number of total infections from the housing block, which has been partially evacuated amid fears of environmental contamination.

The additional confirmed cases took the total tally in Hong Kong to 11,582.

PRESS FOR DETAILS

CHP said there were more than 10 preliminary positive cases.

In the past 14 days, a total of 123 new cases were recorded. Twenty-five of these were local cases, of which 10 were of unknown origin.

PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE

Four of the five imported cases found to have the highly infectious coronavirus strain were two men aged 64 and 74 from Pakistan, and two men aged 28 and 41 from India, a CHP staff said.

She said the fifth patient with the variant was a man aged 25 Bangladesh who arrived on Mar 29 and tested positive on his 12^th day of hotel quarantine.

Pindutin para sa detalye

Among the new cases were two female domestic workers, an Indonesian aged 38 and an Indian aged 26, who both arrived last Friday, the spokeswoman said.

Two Indian patients in today's list flew via Vistara's suspended flight, UK6395

The other imported cases involved an Indonesian man aged 79 who arrived from Surabaya and two Indian men aged 37 and 29 who arrived from New Delhi on Apr 4 via Vistara SIA Flight UK6395.

Call us!

They developed symptoms on Apr 10 while in quarantine at Ramada Hong Kong Grandview Hotel in North Point.

The airline has already been suspended from flying to Hong Kong until Apr 19 after five of its passengers in a single flight had tested positive upon arrival.

Tunghayan ang isa na namang kwentong 

Air India, which had been banned at least six times in the past for the same reason, flew today’s four other infected passengers from New Delhi, including the two with N501Y variant.

The Hospital Authority said a total of 125 confirmed patients are now being treated in 21 public hospitals and the North Lantau Hospital Hong Kong Infection Control Centre. Seven of the patients are in critical condition, three are serious and the remaining 115 stable, the HA said.

Meanwhile, Prof David Hui from the Chinese University of Hong Kong, again urged the administration not to relax social distancing measures yet.

Hui, who is also a government adviser on the Covid-19 strategy, said that despite the drop in number of new cases in recent days, it is too early to ease anti-epidemic measures further, like capping the number of diners to four per table in restaurants.

He warned that any resurgence could dash Hong Kong’s hopes of resuming travel with the mainland and other places.

“We are only seeing sporadic cases, but unfortunately sometimes the cases are of unknown source, and this reflects there are still cases causing community transmission. So, at this stage I think it would be very difficult to relax all the social distancing measures,” he said.

“I think the government is keen to develop travel bubbles and also open the border between Hong Kong and China, so, if you relax the social distancing measures at this stage, it may lead to a rebound, so I think the government needs to be more cautious,” he said.

Hui supported the government’s decision to shelve plans to procure a third vaccine, saying Hong Kong has sufficient Sinovac and BioNTech jabs in store to inoculate the entire population. 

The government can reserve the money for second-generation vaccines with a higher efficacy against mutated virus strains, he said.

Health Secretary Sophia Chan has earlier said the government will postpone shipments of AstraZeneca vaccines, the third brand being procured by Hong Kong, amid concerns that it is causing blood clots, particularly among women.

BASAHIN ANG DETALYE

12,674 new Covid-19 cases reported in Philippines, raising total to over 853k

Underlined figures show the day's tally plus overall infection figure

The Philippines recorded an additional 12,674 Covid-19 cases Saturday, raising the total tally to 853,209.

The number of active cases also rose to an all-time high of 190,245, representing 22.3% of the total figure. But of these, 96.9% of all the infected patients only have mild symptoms, or are asymptomatic.

PRESS FOR DETAILS

PRESS FOR DETAILS

PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE

This is the third highest daily figure recorded since the pandemic broke out in January last year.

The recovery figure rose to 76%, after 593 confirmed patients recovered.

Pindutin para sa detalye

Call us!

Tunghayan ang isa na namang kwentong 

An additional 225 patients passed away, raising the death toll to 14,744.

BASAHIN ANG DETALYE

5 new Covid-19 cases include 3 imported & 2 from infected Tuen Mun block

By The SUN 

Oi Fai residents are evacuated and taken to quarantine centers (RTHK photo)

Residents of block 3 of Oi Fai House, Yau Oi Estate in Tuen Mun were evacuated in two batches on Friday and Saturday after two more people were found infected with Covid-19, raising the number of confirmed cases there to four.

Two preliminary positive cases were also reported from the building, according to a press statement issued by the Centre for Health Protection on Saturday, Apr 10.

PRESS FOR DETAILS

Meanwhile, the three imported cases all involved newly arrived travelers who tested positive while in hotel quarantine. They included a 25 year old female from the Philippines, a 47-year-old female from Pakistan, and a 42-year-old male from India.

The Filipina was asymptomatic, while the two others developed symptoms on Apr 8.

The two new local cases include a 66-year old man and a 6-year-old boy from Oi Fai House.

PRESS FOR DETAILS

Including the two preliminary cases, six people from the block have come down with the virus.

On Friday night, the building was partially evacuated after experts warned that the virus was likely transmitted via the building's pipes.

PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE

Residents of units 09 on every floor of Oi Fai House were the first to be sent to quarantine.

Three of the Covid-19 cases live in that unit on the 21st to 23rd floors. The fourth case lives in a different unit on the 22nd floor, and experts who inspected the building said she may have picked up the virus in a different way.

Pindutin para sa detalye

On Saturday, two more residents in unit 32 were found preliminary positive, prompting the decision to move everyone living in units 10, 31 and 32 to quarantine centers.

The CHP said investigation showed that units 09 and 10, as well as units 31 and 32, separately share a soil pipe.

Call us!

University of Hong Kong microbiologist Yuen Kwok-yung said after the inspection that one of the flats had two exhaust fans in the kitchen, and these fans may have sucked the virus in after creating negative pressure in the room.

Tunghayan ang isa na namang kwentong 

The expert also said it could not be ascertained if the virus only traveled downwards, so to be on the safe side, they decided to move all residents living in the designated units on every floor to quarantine centers.

BASAHIN ANG DETALYE

$20 LANG GLOBE IDD PASS HANGGANG 490 MINUTES SA 5 NUMBERS SA PINAS!

 

Dahil 20 years na ang Barkadahan, may promo ulit sa Globe IDD Pass naman!  $20 na lang ngayon ang dating $28. 

Meron kang 70 IDD minutes per day hanggang 7 days pang tawag sa Pinas na hanggang 5 Globe at TM mobile numbers. Total hanggang 490 IDD minutes! 

Mahabang usapan yan sa mga loved ones at pamilya. 

Naka promo ito hanggang April 30, 2021 lang. 

Paano mag subscribe? Madali lang! 

1. Open My SIM Account, press Plans & Services, select & press Globe IDD Pass. Press Subscribe Now Na. I-enter ang Globe o TM mobile number sa Pinas at i-press ulit ang Subscribe Now Na. Tandaan na hindi na pwede palitan ang number pag na-add mo na ito. 
2. Parehas din ang gagawin mong steps pag subscribe para sa 2^nd, 3^rd, 4^th at 5^th number. Ikaw ay makaka-receive ng confirmation SMS kapag ok na ang subscription mo. 
3. Para tawagan ang 1^st number na iyong ni-register, i-dial mo lang ang 165301 at magko-connect na ito sa number sa Pinas. Pag na-register mo na ang ibang numbers ito naman ang i-dial mo – 165302 sa 2^nd, 165303 sa 3^rd, 165304 sa 4^th at 15305 sa 5^th Globe/TM number. Kung ano ang pagkakasunud sunod na pag-register mo, yun din ang dulo ng number sa 16530X. 

Madali lang, 'di ba? 

Tandaan din na meron itong Local Call Charges na $0.20 per minute kapag tatawag ka gamit ang Pass na ito. Dapat may load ang SIM mo. 

Kung wala ka pang app, i-press mo ang http://wap.smartone.com/bssapp para i-download at install. 

Para sa dagdag na details ng offer ng Globe IDD Pass, puntahan ang link na ito: https://bit.ly/2PGrRt0. 

Para naman malaman mo ang mga latest promos o offers, tingnan Barkadahan leaflets o press https://bit.ly/2Uy81zi . 

Mas bongga talaga sa Barkadahan, pramis! Kaya kung hindi ka pa Barkadahan, mag Barkadahan na, now na! Barkadahan sa SmarTone for the OFW, with the OFW!

5 Filipinas detained for alleged shop thefts denied bail

By Vir B. Lumicao 

The 5 accused are said to have a string of prior convictions 

Four in a group of five Filipinas facing theft charges hugged each other and cheered in the dock at noon on Apr 9, after an Eastern Court magistrate said he would review their bail applications.

But their joy was short-lived when Magistrate Peter Law told each of them that their bail requests were refused due to previous convictions and the risk that they may re-offend or abscond.

PRESS FOR DETAILS

The five, Eleanor Gagni, Liexel Retrita, Ma Consuelo Novo, Virginia Moradella and Loida Figueroa, were arrested in February for alleged shop thefts in North Point.  

Four of them, excluding Moradella, were charged in Tuen Mun Court on Feb 13. The defense lawyer said Moradella was absent at the time because she was in quarantine.

PRESS FOR DETAILS

When the prosecutor asked for a three-week adjournment for legal advice, Law initially objected, saying the defendants had been in detention since February.

The prosecutor said a miscommunication with the police caused the delay in the investigation, which was completed only on Mar 31.

Pindutin para sa detalye

The defense lawyer did not object to the adjournment, saying he had not yet seen the investigator’s report and needed time to study it, as there were five defendants and five different offences.

The prosecutor said charges 1-4 occurred one after the other in North Point on Jan 3, Feb 8 and Feb 10. She said the suspects were caught on CCTV committing the offenses.

Pindutin para sa detalye

She also said Moradella and Figueroa are illegal immigrants, but the defense lawyer objected, saying Moradella is not in Hong Kong illegally. 

Gagni, the first defendant, had four previous convictions for shop theft and four other unrelated offenses, the prosecutor said.

Call now!

She said Retrita had five previous convictions, and was under a suspended sentence for three previous theft convictions when she got involved in the present case. Figueroa had three previous unrelated convictions but jumped police and immigration bail.

Pindutin para sa detalye

The prosecutor asked that the accused be held without bail because of their previous convictions, and the magistrate agreed. He remanded all of them in custody, along with  Moradella who did not apply for bail.

Tunghayan ang isa na namang kwentong 

Law also rejected the prosecution’s request for a three-week adjournment and set the next hearing for Apr 15.

BASAHIN ANG DETALYE

PADALA NA!

CALL US!

Philippines posts record daily death toll of 401

By The SUN

Two records were set Friday: biggest number of Covid-19 deaths and active cases

It would appear that the coronavirus variant sweeping across the Philippines is not just highly infectious, but deadly as well.

On Friday, Apr. 9, the country recorded 401 deaths, the biggest ever daily figure. It took the country’s total fatality toll to 14,520.

PRESS FOR DETAILS

This came as 12,225 new cases were posted on the same day, raising the overall infection tally to 840,554.

Of these, 178,351 are active cases, representing 21.2 percent of the total, the highest ever recorded not just in the country, but in the whole Southeast Asia.

PRESS FOR DETAILS

The total number of cases was the third biggest daily tally, after the 15,310 cases recorded on Apr 2, and the 12,576 the next day.

According to the Department of Health, about half of the reported deaths, or 213, was a result of its revalidation efforts.

Pindutin para sa detalye

It said these cases “that were previously tagged as recoveries were reclassified as deaths after final validation.” However, there was no explanation as to how such a gross mistake could have taken place.

But even with this explanation, 10 laboratories were reported to have failed to submit their data on time, meaning the infection and death rates could have been higher.

Pindutin para sa detalye

Data culled from DOH’s daily reports show that over the past six days alone, 1,097 confirmed Covid-19 patients succumbed to the disease. These comprise two fatalities recorded on Apr 4, 10 on Apr 5, 382 on Apr 6, 242 on Apr 7 and 60 on Apr 8.

Most hospitals in Metro Manila have no more beds for Covid-19 patients

A day earlier, the World Health Organization warned the Philippines was close to crossing the “red line” in exhausting its health care capacity for handling the pandemic after record rises in its daily infections and death toll.

 

Call now!

 “We are concerned about the situation in the Philippines,” said WHO Regional Director Dr. Takeshi Kasai. “We are concerned because the surge is really continuing and moving toward the so-called red line [when] the number of cases exceed or surpass the capacity of health care.”

 

Kasai warned that it was “very, very important” that the red line was not crossed as that would health-care workers in a dire situation, and as a consequence, the decline of health-care capacity.

Pindutin para sa detalye

Meanwhile, an infectious disease expert told the Manila-based daily, Philippine Star, that the record death tally merely reflected the surge in Covid-19 infections across the country.

Rontgene Solante of the San Lazaro Hospital said a majority of those who died recently were senior citizens, who are the most vulnerable among the sectors.

Tunghayan ang isa na namang kwentong 

“The virus is always virulent especially for 60 years old and above. The increase in death will always follow when you have more 60 years old and above admitted with comorbidities,” Solante was quoted as saying.

He added the increase in the mortality figure did not mean that Covid-19 and its rapidly spreading mutation, has become more virulent.

BASAHIN ANG DETALYE

PADALA NA!

CALL US!

 

DONATE TO THE MISSION FOR MIGRANT WORKERS

To those who wish to respond to the Mission for Migrant Workers' urgent appeal for cash aid as it marks its 40th year of service to migrant domestic workers in Hong Kong, here is the link to their campaign: 

https://www.migrants.net/40-gala?fbclid=IwAR3Y-nmtLrPW-Vi_dVTKuXQ9ArHW-EhrKtFbR4urAdBGkH0jJHm7JGvkQEQ

You may also transfer money directly to their bank account using this QR Code:

Or to their TNG account using this QR Code:

For Smartone users, you can also transfer $5 directly to the Mission each time you text the word "DONATE" to their  linked telephone number: