Flight crew with Omicron suspected to have infected two local residents

By The SUN 

The suspected cross infection is said to have occurred at Moon Palace in Festival Walk

A Cathay Pacific crew member who was confirmed to carry Omicron variant of the coronavirus on Wednesday is suspected of having passed on his infection to a relative and a fellow diner at a Kowloon Tong restaurant.

Reports say the crew member had lunch on Monday, Dec 27, with his 76-year-old father and a female relative at Moon Palace in Festival Walk on Monday, Dec. 27, between 1:30pm to 3:00pm.

The elderly man tested preliminary positive for the N501Y and T478 mutant strains after he and the female relative were taken to Penny’s Bay Quarantine Centre as close contacts of the aircrew.

 

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A 34-year-old male diner who had sat with three family members at a separate table nearby has also tested preliminary positive for Covid-19 with the N501Y and T478 mutant strains.

The man had himself tested on Dec 28 in compliance with a compulsory testing notice, but was found negative. But after he developed symptoms on Wednesday he went by light rail to Tuen Mun Hospital where he tested positive for Covid-19 with the N501Y and T478 mutant strains.

A press release issued by the Centre for Health Protection late on Thursday said the two cases have been classified as import-related cases.

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If their infections are confirmed tomorrow, it would mark the first time that the highly contagious Omicron variant had been passed on within the community.

Health authorities have announced a lockdown on the elderly man’s residential building at Wing Chak House, Chak On Estrate in Shek Kip Mei, starting at 7 tonight.

All residents there are required to undergo tests by 1am tomorrow, Friday. The lockdown is expected to be lifted by 7am.

As the other patient lives in a standalone village house in Tuen Mun no lockdown was issued in relation to him. 

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Separately, a third preliminary positive case involving another male Cathay aircrew was reported by the Centre for Health Protection tonight.

The imported case involves a 37-year-old male aircrew who  lives in Block A, Hoi Tao Building, 7-11 Belchers Street, Kennedy Town. He left Hong Kong for the United States on Dec 22 and returned on Dec 25 aboard flight CX840.

He is a co-worker of an earlier confirmed imported case with the Omicron variant, and they arrived in Hong Kong together.

In a follow-up test on Dec 27 he tested negative. But after his colleague tested positive he was sent to Penny’s Bay where he tested preliminarily positive on Dec 29 with a Ct value of about 25 involving the N501Y mutant strain.

His residential block in Kennedy Town has been put on overnight lockdown starting at 10pm tonight.

The CX aircrew arrived from the US on Dec 25 and tested negative at HK Airport

Meanwhile, Moon Palace was closed early this afternoon for disinfection. The CHP said it had gathered 44 environmental samples from the restaurant for testing, and the results are still pending.

Staff at the restaurant have all been sent to PBQC as a precaution.

The Cathay crewman who had dined there arrived in Hong Kong from the United States aboard CX2807 on Christmas Day, and tested negative at the airport. In line with regulations, he proceeded to his flat at Tower1 of TheSeacrest in Tuen Mun.

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On the day he arrived, he reportedly met up at his home with a Cathay colleague who arrived from the US just a day earlier. This colleague tested positive for Covid-19 on Dec 27.

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HK suspends Cebu Pacific for flying in 3 DHs with Covid-19

By Daisy CL Mandap 

Cebu Pac passenger flights from Manila have been halted until Jan 12

Cebu Pacific Airways flight 5J272 from Manila has been banned from flying into Hong Kong for two weeks starting today, Dec 30, after three of its passengers yesterday tested positive on their arrival test.

The infected passengers who are 26, 28 and 61 years of age, are all foreign domestic helpers and asymptomatic. They were among 12 confirmed cases reported today.

The two older women both carried the N501Y mutant strain, indicating they are likely carriers of the highly infectious Omicron variant, while the test result on the other one is still pending.

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Yesterday, another Filipina domestic helper who flew in on 5J272 on Dec 28 also tested positive for coronavirus with likely Omicron, the first such case from the Philippines.

The flight suspension disrupted travel plans of several people scheduled to take the flight from Manila over the next couple of days.

One netizen, Susan J. Base, said in a post on The SUN's Facebook page that her daughter’s Cebu Pacific flight to Hong Kong today was cancelled at the last minute so they had to buy another ticket from Philippine Airlines.

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Another would-be passenger, Eileen Bautista, also said she just received word that her flight on Jan 2 has been canceled. However, Marvy who said she was due to fly on 5J272 tomorrow, had yet to receive word from the airline about the flight cancellation.

The two-week suspension will last until Jan 12. In the meantime, both Cathay Pacific and PAL are still able to operate passenger flights from Manila to Hong Kong.

Cebu Pacific is just one of two airlines suspended from flying passengers to Hong Kong starting today.

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Also banned is flight AY101 by Finnair. Its Dec 27 flight from Helsinki, Finland on Dec 27 carried one passenger who tested positive on arrival while two others did not comply with pre-boarding requirements.

The same infraction was reportedly committed by flight TK083 operated by Turkish Airlines. Its Dec 28 flight from Istanbul, Turkey, had one passenger who tested positive on arrival while two passengers did not comply with requirements.

Two other passengers on the AY101 flight were among those confirmed today to have Covid-19. Both are males, aged 28 and 46, and had been staying at Penny’s Bay Quarantine Centre when they were found infected.

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The test result of the older man is pending while the viral load of the younger’s specimen was not enough for variant testing.

The TK083 passenger on Dec 28, on the other hand, is a 43-year-old man who first took off from Brazil, then Turkey. He carried the N501Y mutant strain.

3 more aircrew came in with Covid-19 from different places

Among the other passengers are three air crew members.

One is a 59-year-old man who flew in from Sweden, Ukraine and the United States via 7W7005 on Dec 28, and tested positive for the N501Y strain.

Another is 24-year-old man who came from Portugal, Italy and the US on Dec 29 via UO724. The viral load in his specimen was not sufficient for variant testing.

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The third is a 32-year-old man who came from the US, Germany and Bahrain on 3S520 on Dec 29. The test result on his specimen is pending.

Also among the passengers is a one-year-old baby boy who tested positive for the mutated virus at a public hospital where he was taken after two family members were previously detected to have Covid-19. They all flew in from Pakistan and the UAE on Dec 22 on board EK384.

The two remaining passengers are a 48-year-old man who came from US and Japan on NH811 on Dec 28 and a 28-year-old man who flew in from Thaialnd aboard UO724 on Dec. 29.

The new cases raised Hong Kong’s total Covid-19 tally to 12,631, which includes one probable case.

Meanwhile, the Centre for Health Protection also reported that 11 more Omicron cases were detected after full genome sequencing by the Department of Health’s public laboratory. They took Hong Kong's total tally for the new variant of concern to 81.

These cases involved eight males and three females, aged 21 to 59 years old. Four of them tested positive on arrival at the airport while four were found infected during quarantine.

The three others were air cargo crew who had gone home in line with regulations after testing negative at the airport, but were later found infected during compulsory testing at community testing centres.

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Filipina DH among 14 new Covid-19 cases, likely Omicron carrier

By The SUN

 

The Filipina DH with the mutant strain came aboard 5J272 on Dec 27

Hong Kong health authorities have reported 14 more confirmed Covid-19 cases today, Dec 29, including a Filipina domestic worker who carried the N501Y mutant strain on her arrival from Manila, indicating that she could have the highly transmissible Omicron variant.

The 36-year-old Filipina flew in on Dec 27 aboard Cebu Pacific flight 5J272, and tested positive on arrival at Hong Kong Airport.

If the full genome sequencing on her sample shows she has Omicron, she would be the first from the Philippines to come to Hong Kong with the dreaded variant.

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In its statement today, the Centre for Health Protection also said 12 previous cases with the N501Y mutant strain were confirmed to be Omicron carriers after further investigation by the public laboratory of the Department of Health.

Cases 12578, 12579, 12581, 12582, 12583, 12584, 12585, 12586, 12588, 12591, 12593 and 12594 all carried the Omicron. They comprised four men and eight women, aged 19 to 79 years old.

So far, a total of 70 Omicron cases have been found in Hong Kong.

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Today’s new Covid-19 cases took Hong Kong’s total tally to 12,619, including one probable case.

Eleven of the new cases carried the N501Y mutant strain, including the Filipina. Two had insufficient viral load for variant testing while one test result is pending.

Among those with the mutant strain is a male Cathay Pacific air crew aged 44 who arrived from Chicago on Dec 25 via CX2807.  He tested negative on arrival, and went home to Tower 1, The SeaCrest, Tuen Mun.

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He developed symptoms on Dec 26 and his sample collected at a community testing centre showed he had Covid-19 with the N501Y mutant strain.

His preliminary positive test result, along with the confirmed infections of two more Cathay air crew yesterday, prompted health authorities to cancel quarantine exemptions for all air cargo staff arriving from overseas. Henceforth, they will have to undergo three days' hotel quarantine.

However, a lockdown on his residential building, along with one in Twilight Court, Peninsula Village in Discovery Bay where one of his confirmed colleagues lives, yielded no new case.

No new case was found during the lockdown of Twilight Court in Discovery Bay

Also included among today’s new cases is a 42-year-old female air crew of Wamos Air who flew in aboard flight PLM254P from Germany and Spain. She also carried the N501Y mutant strain.

Three of the new cases all flew in aboard CX829 from Toronto, Canada on Dec 28, prompting the issuance of a two-week flight suspension on that route, or until Jan. 11.

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The patients are all males, aged 24, 41 and 61, and carried the N501Y strain. They tested positive on their arrival test.

A similar ban was imposed on CX881 from Los Angeles, USA, after its flights on Dec 26 and 28 each had two passengers who were confirmed to have Covid-19 on arrival in Hong Kong. Under current rules, the ban is also triggered when a total of four passengers test positive on arrival in Hong Kong within a seven-day period.

The latest passengers from this flight who have been confirmed to have the coronavirus are a 63-year-old man who arrived on Dec 26 and a 46-year-old woman who came on Dec 28.

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Two of today’s patients who did not have sufficient viral load for testing were a 16-year-old girl who came from the US via CX893 on Dec 26 and a 19-year-old male patient who flew in from the United Kingdom via Finland aboard AY101 on Dec 28.

The test result of one patient, a 29-year-old AeroLogic crewman who came from Singapore, Germany and the USA via 3S502 on Dec 27, is still pending.

The other N501Y carriers are a 35-year-old man who arrived from France and the UK via Finland on AY101 on Dec 27; a 21-year-old woman who arrived from Chicago, USA via CX2807 on Dec. 28; and a man aged 26 from Australia who arrived via CX104 on Dec 27.

Among the patients, the 15-year-old girl from the US, lived on Tower 6 of The Belcher’s in Pok Fu Lam during the incubation period. Thus, her place of residence and places she has visited will be put under a CTN.

Those covered by a CTN in relation to the following premises are reminded to undergo testing tomorrow, Dec 30:

·       On Hei House, Siu Hei Court, 201 Wu Chui Road, Tuen Mun

·       One South Lane, 1 South Lane, Shek Tong Tsui

·       Twilight Court, Peninsula Village, 2 Caperidge Drive, Discovery Bay, Lantau Island

·       Tower 1, The SeaCrest, Hang Kwai Street, Tuen Mun

The CHP's epidemiological investigations and contact tracing on confirmed cases are ongoing. For case details and contact tracing information, please see the Annex or the “Covid-19 Thematic Website” (www.coronavirus.gov.hk).

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Penny’s Bay out, Regala hotel in, for FDH quarantine

By Daisy CL Mandap 

Penny's Bay will stop taking in FDHs for quarantine starting Monday

From Monday, the Penny’s Bay Quarantine Centre will no longer accommodate foreign domestic helpers coming to Hong Kong from overseas.

Instead, the Regala Skycity Hotel on Lantau will be added to the list of quarantine facilities for FDHs from next month. Booking for the 1,138 rooms at the hotel will open this coming Friday, Dec 31.

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The two other designated quarantine hotels for helpers are Rambler Garden Hotel in Tsing Yi and Courtyard by Marriott in Shatin.

According to a government statement, the rooms at Penny’s Bay will be reserved for its response to the rapidly increasing number of Omicron cases coming from abroad.

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Currently, travelers arriving from countries where Omicron has been detected, including most countries in Africa, the United States and the United Kingdom, must spend the first four days of their 21-day quarantine at Penny’s Bay before they are moved to a hotel of their choice.

All helpers who are due to remain in quarantine at Penny's Bay on or after Jan 5 will be transferred to the Regala in phases starting Jan 1 , the government said.

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Those who have already booked places at Penny's Bay and are due to check in before Jan 1 will be moved to Regala in phases. Those who are due to move into Penny's Bay after Jan 1 will be taken directly to Regala on arrival in Hong Kong.

Officials added that they were in discussions with a fourth hotel for it to be designated as a quarantine facility for helpers.

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Earlier, Secretary for Health Sophia Chan visited Penny’s Bay to check on preparations being made there in tackling the emerging threat from the Omicron variant of the coronavirus.

She received a briefing from various government departments on the current operation of the facility, including the number of available units, latest occupancy rate, and the enhancement of cleaning operations so as to increase the turnover rate of the rooms.

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Chan said the number of Omicron cases in Hong Kong has been on the rise, citing figures from the Centre for Health Protection showing that over 90 percent of confirmed patients recorded on Dec 26 and 27 carried the highly transmissible variant.

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Filipino DH charged with wounding after punch left his girlfriend comatose

By Daisy CL Mandap 

The Filipina remains in coma at Eastern Hospital a week after the alleged assault

A Filipina domestic helper has been fighting for her life in hospital for the past week, after she was allegedly punched by her boyfriend who is also a Filipino, at a boarding house on Stone Nullah Lane in Wanchai on Dec 22.

According to the police, the 37-year-old Filipina was taken to Ruttonjee Hospital in Wanchai in the evening of Dec 23, nearly 24 hours after she was assaulted by her 42-year-old Filipino boyfriend who is also a domestic helper.

Police said the alleged assailant, identified by the couple’s mutual friends as “Bernie”, was arrested at 9:16pm of Dec 23 after he took his unconscious girlfriend to hospital.

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He was reportedly detained before being taken to Eastern Magistracy on Dec 25 where he was charged with wounding. He is scheduled to appear in court again on Feb 7.

The alleged victim, meanwhile, was transferred to Pamela Youde Nethersole Eastern Hospital after she was diagnosed with brain hemorrhage, and was operated on. But she has yet to regain consciousness.

Friends and family members are seeking justice for the Filipina, said to hail from Isabela, who they said was at the boarding house while waiting for her new employment visa to be released.

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They also want to get more information about the incident, especially as to the reason why it took the boyfriend a full day after the assault (which he has reportedly confessed to) before deciding to take the woman to the hospital.

They initially contacted their provincemate, Marites Palma of Social Justice for Migrant Workers, to seek help in relaying their concern to the Consulate.

According to a Filipina domestic worker who introduced herself to The SUN as the victim’s best friend, Bernie had called her up on Wednesday night to say sorry as he had hurt her friend.

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The informant also shared a photo showing the victim with a bruised face as she lay motionless on a bed in the boarding house. She recalled being told that her friend had lost consciousness after the alleged assault.

Victim's friend shared this photo showing the victim with a bruised face 

“Sa pagkakaalam ko po pangatlong beses na away nila yan, pero yan ang pinaka grabe. Yung boardmates pa ang nagsabi sa lalaki na itakbo na sa hospital ang kaibigan ko kasi nga hindi na nagigising at nakaihi na sa higaan,” she said.

(As far as I know that was the third time the couple had quarreled, but that was the worst incident. The boardmates had to tell the man to rush my friend to hospital as she remained unconscious even after peeing on the bed).

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She is asking for help to make sure the police get to hear the full story of what had happened, and for the authorities to give her friend justice.

Meanwhile, a sister of the victim who is in the Philippines, is asking if it’s possible for someone in her family to come to Hong Kong and check on the condition of the victim. 

She is also asking for help in retrieving her sister’s belongings from the boarding house, particularly her HKID, as the hospital reportedly wants to verify her personal details.

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The Consulate, through the assistance to nationals section, has promised to extend help. 

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