A woman wearing a mask walks her dog on the street in Hong Kong, March 1, 2021. (LO PING FAI/XINHUA)
HONG KONG – Hong Kong reported 11 new COVID-19 cases on Friday, including one untraceable case, pushing the city’s tally to 11,439.
Eight of the fresh infections were imported, including four domestic helpers from the Philippines, one helper from Indonesia and three arrivals from Pakistan, Albert Au, principal medical and health officer of the Centre for Health Protection’s communicable disease branch, said at a briefing.
The untraceable case reported on Friday involved a 38-year-old Japanese stewardess who lived in Leigyinn Building in Causeway Bay. She developed symptoms on March 18 and visited Go24 Fitness multiple times between March 11 and 23
The untraceable case reported on Friday involved a 38-year-old Japanese stewardess who lived in a sub-divided flat at Leigyinn Building in Causeway Bay, Au said. She developed symptoms on March 18 and visited Go24 Fitness, a gym in North Point, multiple times between March 11 and 23.
The stewardess received a BioNTech vaccine shot on March 15, Au said, adding that she may have been infected before the inoculation.
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About 20 trainees and four coaches have been classified as close contacts and put under quarantine. Six other residents of the Causeway Bay building would also be quarantined, Au said.
The cluster linked to Ursus Fitness, a gym in Sai Ying Pin, saw one more patient on Friday, according to Au, bringing its total to 155. They were 94 patrons, eight workers and 53 close contacts of theirs.
As of Thursday, around 420,900 people have received their first dose of vaccine against COVID-19, with 269,600 getting the Sinovac vaccine and the rest the BioNTech jab.
Residents who received their first doses of Sinovac shot on Feb 26 – when the city’s vaccination drive began – started to get their second doses on Friday.
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The vaccination of BioNTech jabs has been suspended until further notice as an investigation on packaging defects of the vaccine was ongoing.
A 59-year-old man who received a BioNTech shot on March 18 died on Thursday. The Centre for Health Protection said in a statement that he was rushed to the hospital from a hiking trail in Sai Kung. Media reports said he was a veteran hiker without underlying conditions.
Meanwhile, a 78-year-old COVID-19 patient with chronic diseases died on Friday morning, becoming the 205th coronavirus-related death in the city.