People wait for a Star Ferry to cross Victoria Harbour in Hong Kong on August 23, 2021. (ISAAC LAWRENCE / AFP)
HONG KONG – Half of Hong Kong's eligible population have taken both shots of the COVID-19 vaccine as the Chinese financial hub is racing to build sufficient herd immunity amid the raging pandemic around the globe.
Around 3.37 million Hong Kong residents have been fully vaccinated under a government inoculation program starting late February this year, while more than 4.09 million people have received their first shot.
Around 3.37 million Hong Kong residents have been fully vaccinated under a government inoculation program starting late February this year
Meanwhile, Hong Kong's Center for Health Protection reported three new imported cases of COVID-19 on Monday, taking the total tally to 12,110.
The CHP said in a statement that the new cases involved a three-year-old boy and a 27-year-old man who arrived from Turkey and a 24-year-old man from Egypt.
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The man who traveled to Egypt had received two vaccine doses in Hong Kong on March 18 and April 15 while the man from Turkey took his jabs in the United Kingdom on June 27 and July 22, the CHP said.
The traveler from Egypt started having symptoms on Aug 15 while the two others were asymptomatic, it added.
A total of 74 cases have been reported in the past 14 days, including one untraceable local case, with the rest imported, according to the center.
According to the Hospital Authority, there were 74 COVID-19 patients hospitalized as of Monday in 10 public hospitals and the North Lantau Hospital Hong Kong Infection Control Centre, including one patient in serious condition.
With inputs from Xinhua