People walk across a street in Hong Kong on May 3, 2022 (KIN CHEUNG / AP)
HONG KONG – Hong Kong reported 313 new COVID-19 infections on Wednesday as a patient at Penny’s Bay quarantine center passed away.
The new cases included 291 local infections and 22 imported cases, Albert Au Ka-wing, principal medical and health officer of the Centre for Health Protection’s communicable disease branch, said in a press briefing.
The new cases included 291 local infections and 22 imported cases, Albert Au Ka-wing, principal medical and health officer of the Centre for Health Protection’s communicable disease branch, said in a press briefing
He added 112 were confirmed through nucleic acid tests and 201 by rapid antigen tests. Wednesday’s figure is slightly higher than the 290 infections on Tuesday and the 283 reported on Monday.
Au said 12 students and five school staff members also tested positive for the virus, with eight of them testing positive on Wednesday morning while the rest learned of their infection on Tuesday afternoon.
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He said eight of the students have not been to school while four went to their classes on Tuesday since their virus test results were negative at the time.
“After knowing about their positive test result, they have not been back to school,” Au said.
He said the 22 imported cases included seven that were detected at the airport after their arrived from Spain, France, the United Kingdom, Singapore, Germany, and India.
Thirteen cases from the UK, Singapore, Australia, India, the Philippines, and Canada were found during quarantine, he added.
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Au also said that two other patients were detected during tests on the 12th day after their arrival in the city.
“Our preliminary investigation results showed that they could be re-positive cases,” he said.
Larry Lee Lap-yip, chief manager (Integrated Clinical Services) of the Hospital Authority, said at the same briefing that there were three new deaths, including that of a 59-year-old man who was in quarantine at Penny’s Bay.
The man had chronic diseases, including diabetes, hypertension, renal failure, and heart problems. In 2018, he had a kidney transplant.
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The patient tested positive for COVID-19 on April 28 and was brought to Penney’s Bay. Around noon on May 1, he was found unconscious in his room, Lee said. The patient was brought to the North Lantau hospital but no pulse was detected.
“We performed intubation. His blood sugar was low and we had five shots to boost his heart. And then at around 2 pm, he was confirmed dead,” Lee said, adding that the Coroner’s Court will look into the patient’s death.
Lee said two more patients infected with COVID-19 died on May 3, including one from a residential care home.
He added that 1,170 patients were being treated in public hospitals, public hospitals the North Lantau Hospital Hong Kong Infection Control Centre, and the AsiaWorld-Expo treatment center.
Three were in critical condition, another three in serious condition, while seven were in intensive care units, he added.
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