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Coronavirus now 'spreading out of control' in Hong Kong, says leader

Coronavirus now 'spreading out of control' in Hong Kong, says leader

The coronavirus is spreading out of control in Hong Kong with a record 108 new cases confirmed, the finance hub's leader said on Sunday as she tightened social distancing measures to tackle the sudden surge in infections.

The city had previously enjoyed success in tackling the virus, all but ending local transmissions by late June. In the last two weeks infections have spiked once more, however, and doctors fear the new outbreak is now spreading undetected in the densely packed territory of 7.5 million people.

It follows the wider global trend of several countries that previously thought they had the virus under control suffering from a rise in cases, with parts of Australia, Spain and Israel all imposing restrictions to tackle the surges. Meanwhile, the World Health Organization reported a record increase in global Covid-19 cases for the second day in a row on Saturday, with the total rising by 259,848 in 24 hours.

Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam has announced new measures to tackle the outbreak, which she said is spreading out of control - AP
Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam has announced new measures to tackle the outbreak, which she said is spreading out of control - AP

Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam said on Sunday that more than 500 infections had been confirmed in the last fortnight alone, nearly a third of the 1,855 cases since the outbreak began.

"I think the situation is really critical and there is no sign the situation is being brought under control," Lam told reporters.

Lam announced new social distancing measures last week, closing many businesses including bars, gyms and nightclubs, and ordering everyone to wear masks on public transport. Restaurants were ordered to only offer takeaway services in the evenings.

Further regulations were announced on Sunday in response to the worsening outbreak, including plans to make it compulsory to wear masks inside any public indoor venue and a new order for non-essential civil servants and all those not involved in emergencies to work for home.

Ms Lam added that a further 2,000 quarantine units would be built near Hong Kong's Disneyland resort to monitor and treat those who test positive. AsiaWorld-Expo is also being converted to accommodate stable Covid-19 patients and elderly people in the event of further outbreaks at care homes.

She said further social distancing measures would be rolled out if the daily infection rate did not ease in coming days, but remained reluctant to order people to stay at home.

"We can't just make a simple and extreme move to cut everything at once," Lam said, adding that officials would try to strike a balance between protecting health and keeping the economy afloat.

"It's hard to tell what kind of measures we will need to roll out... many places have ordered people to stay home," she said.

"We haven't adopted that in the last six months because we wanted to maintain a normal life for everyone."

Authorities say testing will be ramped up, targeting high-risk populations such as taxi drivers and restaurant workers after clusters were found within their ranks.

So far just twelve people have been died after contracting the virus in Hong Kong - four in the last fortnight - while the city's overall case tally now stands at 1,885.

Of the 108 new cases, 83 were locally transmitted while 25 were imported, according to the Centre of Health Protection.

The centre’s Dr Chuang Shuk-kwan said 35 local cases were related to existing clusters or infected cases, including those who had dined at Windsor Restaurant in Tsz Wan Shan and at Tao Heung restaurant in Mong Kok.

Of the remaining 48 cases of unknown sources, at least three were taxi drivers, Chuang added.

For the imported cases, 15 came from the Philippines, including three seamen and 10 domestic workers. The rest came from places including Pakistan, France and the United States.