Workers clean a street in Yau Ma Tei district in Hong Kong, Jan 27, 2021, after movement restrictions were lifted in the area. (CALVIN NG / CHINA DAILY)
HONG KONG – The Hong Kong government on Monday night cordoned off four areas in three districts for targeted testing as the city reported 34 new COVID-19 cases.
The government said it planned to finish its operations by 7 am Tuesday after the residents in these “restricted areas” get tested for the coronavirus.
The government cordoned off Majestic House on 80 Nathan Road, Tsim Sha Tsui and Ho Choi Building, 42 to 58A On Hing Street in Yuen Long at 7 pm Monday.
An hour later, the police set up a “restricted area” at Loong King Mansion, 23-35 Ma Tau Wai Road, Kowloon City before government personnel also cordoned off 142-148 Reclamation Street; 59A, 59B, 59C Public Square Street; 150-160 Reclamation Street; and 2A, Wing Sing Lane in Yau Ma Tei at 8:30 pm.
The government set up temporary specimen collection stations while residents were told to stay in their premises until their test results were confirmed.
This happened after Chief Secretary Matthew Cheung Kin-chung said in a briefing on Monday afternoon that more affected buildings would be cordoned off before Feb 10, particularly those with decrepit premises and sewage samples that tested positive for the virus.
Chief Secretary Matthew Cheung Kin-chung said in a briefing on Monday afternoon that more affected buildings would be cordoned off before Feb 10, particularly those with decrepit premises and sewage samples that tested positive for the virus
Cheung also announced that the government was tightening its rules for compulsory mass testing to stop the spread of the pandemic.
“We are determined to take more aggressive, resolute and pertinent measures to contain the outbreaks before the Lunar New Year holidays. If the situation gets better afterwards, those affected businesses can gradually resume operations after the holidays,” Cheung said.
Effective immediately, all residents of a building would be subject to mandatory testing if a single untraceable COVID-19 case is detected in their building, he said.
ALSO READ: Cheung stresses precise screening as HK logs 53 new cases
Previously, the government only issued compulsory testing notices if there were two cases identified, except those in the designated areas hard hit by the virus.
The testing rule for workplaces were also tightened. Cheung said if two employees of a company test positive for the virus, all of its employees would have to undergo testing.
Noting the concern of public health experts that the following two weeks would be very crucial in reining in local outbreaks, Cheung announced that the city’s social distancing measures, which were set to expire on Thursday, would be extended until Feb 17.
The measures, which have been in force for nearly two months, include a ban on in-house dining after 6 pm, a ban on public gatherings of more than two people, as well as the shutdown of a string of entertainment venues.
READ MORE: HK can give 36,000 COVID-19 shots a day in Feb rollout
However, some outdoor sports facilities that see less intense physical contact will be reopened on Thursday for public’s well-being, Cheung added.
Speaking at the same briefing, Secretary for Education Kevin Yeung Yun-hung said the Education Bureau is considering the feasibility of increasing face-to-face classes starting late February on a half-day basis. Details are expected to be unveiled this week.
Of Monday's 34 new COVID-19 cases, five were imported and 29 locally transmitted, bringing the city’s overall tally to 10,486.
The new cases included eight that were of unknown origin, Chuang Shuk-kwan, head of the Centre for Health Protection’s communicable disease branch, said at a separate briefing.
The imported cases included two from Indonesia, and one each from the Philippines, Dubai and Nepal, she said.
READ MORE: Cheung: HK needs to strengthen testing measures to fight virus
There were more than 20 people who tested preliminarily positive for the coronavirus, Chuang added.
She said two more residents at Luk Yeung Sun Chuen Block R in Tsuen Wan were confirmed infected. The cluster now has 12 patients and residents at 4-letttered and 5-lettered units above the 18th floor were evacuated.
An 85-year-old woman, who was hospitalized due to terminal illnesses on Dec 14, died from the disease on Sunday morning, the Hospital Authority said in a statement on Monday. She was the city’s 182nd coronavirus-related fatality.
Meanwhile, Sik Sik Yuen Wong Tai Sin Temple, the city’s iconic Taoist temple, said at a Monday briefing that it will not be open to the public on the eve of the Chinese New Year, when it would normally attract large crowds of worshippers who scramble to make their offerings with incense sticks.
This was the first time in the temple's 99-year history that the popular religious ritual got cancelled. A ceremony at the temple will instead be broadcast live on its social media page.
Che Kung Temple in Sha Tin also announced that its annual fortune stick drawing ceremony on the second day of the Chinese New Year would also be closed to the public due to the pandemic.