The group of Lan Kwai Fong Hotel @ Jiuru Fang in Central, suspected of vertical transmission, may be expanded. A hotel patient visited McDonald’s at Cityplaza after completing the quarantine. When the CHP traced other cases, it was found that three mothers and children were diagnosed at the same time period, which cannot be ruled out. When the hotel patient left the fast food restaurant, they passed the seats of the three mothers and sons, and it is now investigating whether the two are related. In addition, a man from Singapore who worked in Exchange Square in Central was tested and confirmed on the 12th day after arriving in Hong Kong. The authorities said that his virus load was high and local infection could not be ruled out. The epidemic has been stable recently, but Au Ka-wing, chief doctor of the Infectious Diseases Division of the Center for Protection, pointed out that the immunity of recovered citizens will decline over time, and new mutant virus strains that appear in the future may have “immune escape”, so the sixth wave of the epidemic will definitely appear.
There were 237 confirmed cases in Hong Kong yesterday, including 25 imported cases. Lan Kwai Fong Hotel @ Jiuru Fang, which is a designated quarantine hotel, recently appeared a suspected vertical infection cluster of the Omicron BA.2.12.1 variant virus strain. A couple arriving in Hong Kong from the United States were diagnosed at the community testing center after completing the quarantine. Among them, the 64-year-old female patient became ill on the 12th of this month. The next day, she visited McDonald’s in Cityplaza, and the place has been included in the mandatory testing notice. When the CHP traced the whereabouts of other cases, it was found that the 41-year-old woman and her 8- and 9-year-old sons who became ill and diagnosed last Wednesday (18th) had been at the McDonald’s for about 10 minutes with the 64-year-old woman.
Ou Jiarong pointed out that the three mothers and sons were sitting on the round table in front of the dining table at the time. Although they were far away from the 64-year-old woman, the woman might have passed by the three mothers and sons’ seats when she left the McDonald’s. He said that the two groups of cases appeared in the same place at the same time, and it is currently unknown whether their infection was coincidental or related.
The three mothers and sons did not visit other restaurants during the period of contagion. The two sons also did not attend classes at Quarry Bay Primary School in Braemar Hill after testing positive for rapid tests. Therefore, no one else had to be quarantined. The father tested negative. Ou Jiarong said that for the sake of prudence, the block C of Hongjing Garden, Quarry Bay, where they lived, had to undergo mandatory inspection, but in fact the building was included in the announcement last Friday (20th), and the mandatory inspection period expired yesterday. The couple who arrived in Hong Kong from the United States who completed quarantine at Lan Kwai Fong Hotel @ Jiurufang have been included in the mandatory testing announcement where they went after completing the quarantine. Au Jiarong said that no relevant cases have been recorded so far.
Singaporean man arriving in Hong Kong with high virus load
The imported cases recorded yesterday included a 46-year-old man who came from Singapore on the 9th of this month. He developed symptoms on the 12th day after arriving in Hong Kong. He was confirmed after undergoing mandatory testing on the same day. He lives in Tower 6, South Bank of Bel-Air, Cyberport, and works at Torq Capital Management in Phase 2 of Exchange Square in Central. Except for exercising at Bel-Air Club on the evening of last Thursday (19th), and the evening of last Friday (20th) I have never been to any other place except the American Club on the Exchange Square. Ou Jiarong said that there were no other cases on the same floor or in the same seat of the quarantine hotel where the patient stayed. Before the results of the full genetic analysis, it was impossible to distinguish whether the case was a local infection or an imported case.
Two more trainees and one staff member of the Hongsi Training Center group in Sheung Wan were diagnosed, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 24. Ou Jiarong described that the investigation was nearly completed, and pointed out that some students revealed that some people would pull down their masks to drink water in the class, and they would also remove their masks to speak loudly when reporting, and some people would eat and drink in the lounge, which would lead to an outbreak later in the course. The Hong Kong University Alumni Association College in Wong Chuk Hang, where 3 students were diagnosed in the same class, had no new cases yesterday. The school said that classes will resume as normal today.
Sewage samples drop in viral load
The enclosure operation for Block 23A of South Horizons Peninsula, Ap Lei Chau, was completed yesterday morning, and the previous operation at Hiu Chui Court, Siu Sai Wan, had “zero confirmed cases”. Ou Jiarong said that the current epidemic situation has declined, and the EPD collects about 100 sewage samples every day, and the positive rate remains at 20 to 30, but the virus load is lower than before, emphasizing that the containment action does not mean that new cases will definitely be found. He pointed out that the trend of the epidemic has been stable in recent days and there has been no rebound, but he pointed out that the immunity of recovered citizens will decline over time, and he believes that the new mutant virus strains that appear in the future may have “immune escape”, increasing the risk of infection and outbreaks. He clearly stated that the sixth wave must be It will appear, “It’s only a matter of time.”
Liu Jiaxian, the chief administrative manager of the Hospital Authority, also said that while the number of confirmed cases has dropped, the number of patients and demand at designated clinics has also been decreasing. The Hospital Authority closed 8 designated clinics today, and will resume general outpatient services tomorrow after disinfection; the remaining 7 designated clinics in various clusters will still operate.
Originally published on AM730 https://www.am730.com.hk/local/Lan Kwai Fong Hotel patients visited Taikoo Shing Lao Mai – A family of three contracted the virus within 10 minutes of the same session – Au Jiarong – The sixth wave must appear/320519