Virus comes to Sai Kung

Up to now Sai Kung has been an outlier when it comes to Covid-19 confirmed cases. That has changed over the past few days.

This morning The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health (DH) reported that a 48-year-old female resident of Tui Min Hoi Village, Sai Kung (Case 2359) had been tested positive for the virus having shown symptoms of the infection on 20 July. Tracing her movements is underway, and it is expected that a number of local shops, restaurants and markets may have been visited during the incubation period.

At the same time contact tracing for Case 2099, a 36-year-old woman declared very detailed tracing information. She lives in Yiu Ping House, Yiu On Estate, and reported that she had traveled to 17 places during the period. These included Padstow Restaurant and Bar in Pak Sha Wan, Sai Kung.

Although some recent cases involved residents and staff of the Salvation Army Lung Hang Residence for Senior Citizens in Sha Tin, all residents of the residential care home for the elderly (RCHE) were identified as close contacts and will need to be quarantined. Noting that residents of the RCHE might have special care needs, the DH staff has conducted a site visit with personnel from the Hospital Authority to determine if the environment of the RCHE is suitable for on-site quarantine of residents.

As the RCHE is considered by the DH not suitable for quarantine of residents upon inspection, the Government has activated the Cheung Muk Tau Holiday Centre for the Elderly in Sai Kung as a quarantine centre for residents of the RCHE who are close contacts of confirmed cases and are bedridden or requiring special care during the quarantine period. The staff of the concerned agency will attend to the needs of residents admitted to this quarantine centre.