A police officer displays a banner showing social distancing to prevent the spread of coronavirus to visitors at a park in Hong Kong, Jan 2, 2021. (VINCENT YU/AP)

HONG KONG - Hong Kong reported 35 new COVID-19 infections on Saturday as a government official said COVID-19 vaccination in the financial hub is expected to start in February. 

Writing on social media, Secretary for the Civil Service Patrick Nip Tak-kuen said the government aims to finish the preparation work of different departments by the end of January. 

An 88-year-old COVID-19 patient died early Saturday morning, bringing the total number of coronavirus-related deaths in the city to 150

He added that residents could receive the shots at community vaccination centers, hospitals, clinics and elderly homes when the vaccination program begins.

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Among the 35 new infections reported on Saturday, 34 were locally transmitted, 10 of which untraceable, Chuang Shuk-kwan, who heads the Centre for Health Protection’s communicable disease branch, said at a briefing in the afternoon. 

The new additions pushed up the city's tally to 8,923. Chuang also said there were more than 40 preliminarily positive cases.

An 88-year-old COVID-19 patient died early Saturday morning, bringing the total number of coronavirus-related deaths in the city to 150. 

The man with chronic illness was admitted to Yan Chai Hospital due to pneumonia on Dec 5. His condition continued to deteriorate and he was transferred to the intensive care unit on Dec 13. He succumbed to the disease at 12:44 am Saturday, according to a spokesperson of the hospital.

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Meanwhile, Tony Ko Pat-sing, chief executive of the city’s Hospital Authority, said on Saturday that the authority is considering testing all of its medical staff regularly for coronavirus.

With inputs from Bloomberg