A man fishes as a junk boat sails on Victoria Harbour in Hong Kong on July 22, 2022. (ISAAC LAWRENCE / AFP)

HONG KONG – Hong Kong reported 4,250 new COVID-19 cases on Sunday and eight new deaths, bringing the toll during the fifth wave to 9,256.

The new cases comprised 186 imported infections and 4,064 local cases, Chuang Shuk-kwan, head of the communicable disease branch of the Centre for Health Protection, said in a news briefing. 

The new cases comprised 186 imported infections and 4,064 local cases, said Chuang Shuk-kwan, head of the communicable disease branch of the Centre for Health Protection

Chuang urged the elderly to get inoculated, noting that half of the eight elderly patients who passed away were unvaccinated.

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“The daily case number is at a high level. There are now signs of a drop. We recommend that people follow the COVID control rules,” Chuang  

“Based on the numbers for the past two weeks, the daily case count doubles every two or three weeks. We hope people can follow the COVID restrictions so that the number wont reach a very high level,” she added.  

Chuang said 76 of the imported cases were detected at the airport, 75 at quarantine hotels, and 35 after they left quarantine.

Thirty-one came from the United Kingdom, 25 from the United States, 17 from the Philippines, and 15 from India, she said.

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Chuang added that one residential care home for the elderly and four care homes for persons with disabilities each reported one case. 

Larry Lee Lap-yip, chief manager (Integrated Clinical Services) of the Hospital Authority, said at the same briefing that the eight patients who died comprised four men and four women aged 75 to 103 years old. They also had chronic diseases like hypertension, arthritis, dementia, and cancer.

Lee also said 1,347 COVID patients were being treated in pubic hospitals as of Sunday, including 172 new patients.

Twenty-six were in critical condition, including three in intensive care, and 26 others in serious condition, he added.

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