Hong Kong reports 73 new Covid-19 cases, including 50 linked to ‘super-spreading’ dance cluster
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Monday’s daily figure was the highest since August 16 when the city reported 74 cases.
Authorities had earlier warned of a “super-spreading” event linked to located across the city, including the Wan Chai Starlight Dance Club, Heavenly Dance in Sheung Wan, and Dance Culture in Causeway Bay.
The city’s total number of confirmed infections stood at 5,701, with 108 related deaths.
The Hospital Authority also reported that 224 patients were being treated at 19 public hospitals. Eight were in critical condition, two in serious condition and the rest stable.
The authority’s chief manager, Dr Linda Yu, also said the community treatment facility at AsiaWorld-Expo would start receiving positive cases with milder symptoms from Wednesday.
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“Those preliminary positive cases will also be sent there to wait for final test results and will be transferred to other facilities or stay in the community treatment facility as appropriate if they become confirmed cases,” Yu said.
She said the move would hopefully help spare resources at public hospitals for more serious cases.
Earlier on Monday, Secretary for Food and Health Professor Sophia Chan Chiu-chee said the government was reviewing the need to further tighten social-distancing rules, including closing businesses that catered to activities with a high risk of infection.
“We are keeping an eye on the epidemiological investigations by the Centre for Health Protection, so as to decide how far the social-distancing measures should be tightened,” Chan told a radio programme.
When asked if the authorities would order the closure of dance clubs after cases linked to the cluster ballooned to 80 as of Sunday, Chan said the government needed to “first figure out what activities have a higher risk” of spreading the virus.
She said dancing was risky, especially when dancers did not wear a mask while their bodies stayed very close.
Officials have set up mobile specimen collection stations and specimen bottle distribution points in Tsuen Wan, Sai Kung, and Tai Po from Monday to identify cases in the community as early as possible to help cut transmission chains.
Meanwhile, Secretary for Labour and Welfare Law Chi-kwong was expected to announce details of a government plan to give a one-off HK$5,000 subsidy to lower-income people diagnosed with Covid-19 later on Monday.
The scheme, which would not be means-tested, was aimed at reassuring people concerned about loss of earnings while in quarantine, the government said.
www.scmp.com
Monday’s daily figure was the highest since August 16 when the city reported 74 cases.
Authorities had earlier warned of a “super-spreading” event linked to located across the city, including the Wan Chai Starlight Dance Club, Heavenly Dance in Sheung Wan, and Dance Culture in Causeway Bay.
The city’s total number of confirmed infections stood at 5,701, with 108 related deaths.
The Hospital Authority also reported that 224 patients were being treated at 19 public hospitals. Eight were in critical condition, two in serious condition and the rest stable.
The authority’s chief manager, Dr Linda Yu, also said the community treatment facility at AsiaWorld-Expo would start receiving positive cases with milder symptoms from Wednesday.
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23 Nov 2020
“Those preliminary positive cases will also be sent there to wait for final test results and will be transferred to other facilities or stay in the community treatment facility as appropriate if they become confirmed cases,” Yu said.
She said the move would hopefully help spare resources at public hospitals for more serious cases.
Earlier on Monday, Secretary for Food and Health Professor Sophia Chan Chiu-chee said the government was reviewing the need to further tighten social-distancing rules, including closing businesses that catered to activities with a high risk of infection.
“We are keeping an eye on the epidemiological investigations by the Centre for Health Protection, so as to decide how far the social-distancing measures should be tightened,” Chan told a radio programme.
When asked if the authorities would order the closure of dance clubs after cases linked to the cluster ballooned to 80 as of Sunday, Chan said the government needed to “first figure out what activities have a higher risk” of spreading the virus.
She said dancing was risky, especially when dancers did not wear a mask while their bodies stayed very close.
Officials have set up mobile specimen collection stations and specimen bottle distribution points in Tsuen Wan, Sai Kung, and Tai Po from Monday to identify cases in the community as early as possible to help cut transmission chains.
Meanwhile, Secretary for Labour and Welfare Law Chi-kwong was expected to announce details of a government plan to give a one-off HK$5,000 subsidy to lower-income people diagnosed with Covid-19 later on Monday.
The scheme, which would not be means-tested, was aimed at reassuring people concerned about loss of earnings while in quarantine, the government said.
