A woman wearing a face mask and shield walks at a commercial building in Hong Kong on April 14, 2022. (KIN CHEUNG / AP)
HONG KONG - Hong Kong reported 747 new COVID-19 cases on Sunday, the third consecutive day that the daily count fell below 1,000, bringing the city’s tally during the fifth wave of infections to 1.185 million.
Chuang Shuk-kwan, head of the communicable disease branch of the Centre for Health Protection, said in a news briefing that the new cases included 11 imported infections and 736 local cases.
Chuang Shuk-kwan, head of the communicable disease branch of the Centre for Health Protection, said in a news briefing that the new cases included 11 imported infections and 736 local cases
She said 446 of the cases were confirmed through nucleic acid tests and 301 by rapid antigen tests.
The city recorded 946 new coronavirus infections on Friday and 794 on Saturday.
Chuang reminded members of the public to remain vigilant, adding that a “rebound might be possible" after social distancing measures are relaxed on April 21.
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“We keep an eye on the overall trend and the various indicators. The government has relevant contingency plans in case a rebound happens,” Chuang said, added that the Hospital Authority has also made preparations.
Larry Lee Lap-yip, chief manager (Integrated Clinical Services) of the HA, said at the same briefing that 24 patients who tested positive for COVID-19 died in the last 24 hours, including 11 men and 13 women aged 55 to 106 years old.
He said 11 of them came from residential care homes while nine had no vaccination records.
Lee added that there were also 5 deaths between March 5 and April 15 that were not reported earlier.
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He also said that 8,247 patients were being treated in public hospitals, the North Lantau Hospital Hong Kong Infection Control Centre, the HA Infectious Disease Centre, and the AsiaWorld-Expo treatment centre.
Fifty-one patients were in intensive care units while eight were in serious condition, Lee added.
