The SUN HK : CE warns of more ‘ambush lockdowns’, as 64 new infections reported

By The SUN

CE Lam says next lockdowns will be kept secret, quicker and smaller in scope

Chief Executive Carrie Lam has said that more lockdowns could be imposed to combat the spread of the coronavirus, but the next ones will be “ambush-style operations,” meaning, there will be no prior announcements.

The city’s top official made the statement ahead of the weekly Executive Council meeting today, Jan 25.

Lam said it was unfortunate that details of the lockdown in Jordan over the weekend were leaked ahead of time. That allowed about 200 residents of some buildings in the area to flee before enforcers could move in.

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To make sure no leak is made about future operations, she said the lockdowns would be smaller in scale, but could take place in several areas at the same time.

Lam hailed the 44-hour lockdown and mandatory testing in Jordan a success, saying it helped stop the spread of the virus. Of the more than 7,000 residents of some 150 buildings tested, 13 were found to have Covid-19.

She warned those who did not comply with the compulsory testing orders could face penalties.

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“We will go back to that building without notice and try to check everyone coming out of the building whether they have an SMS showing a negative result. If no, that means you have not complied,” she said.

The personal data of the test evaders will be forwarded to the Centre for Health Protection so they could be issued with summons, or served a fixed penalty ticket .

Meanwhile, health officials said the social distancing measures currently in place will be extended by another week, or up to Feb. 3. The restrictions include no more than two people gathering in public, a ban on restaurant dine-ins after 6pm, and the closure of such venues as bars, amusement parks, gyms and swimming pools.

Current social distancing rules will be extended until Feb 3

Undersecretary for Food and Health Chui Tak-yi made the announcement, after revealing that 41% of all infections in the past week were untraceable, and 36% of the patients were asymptomatic, suggesting the silent transmission in the community was still widespread.

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He also announced that two more neighborhoods in Hung Hom and Mongkok will be placed under stepped-up mandatory testing orders, which means the operation could be triggered by a single infection in either place.

An existing mandatory testing zone in Jordan has also been expanded, while one in Sham Shui Po remains the same.

Dr Chui said the move was taken after studying the distribution of infections in buildings in the areas over the past two weeks.

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“We want to take action before these cases become significant, that’s why we are adding these areas,” he said.

The testing zone in Mong Kok is bound by Nathan Road in the east, Public Square Street in the south, Ferry Street in the west, and Dundas Street in the north.

The one in Hung Hom is bound by Station Lane, Dock Street, Po Loi Street, Winslow Street, Hung Hom South Road and Chatham Road North.

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The expanded testing site in Jordan will now reach Nathan Road in the east, Austin Road in the south, Ferry Street and Canton Road, including Man Wah Sun Chuen, in the west, and Kansu Street in the north.

Of today’s infections, 63 were locally acquired, and one was imported from the United Arab Emirates. Among the local cases, 21 were of unknown origin.

More than 50 preliminary positive cases were also recorded.

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The new cases raised the city’s total Covid-19 tally to 10,222, with 172 related deaths, 168 of them being in public hospitals.

These include two elderly patients who passed on in the past 24 hours: an 86-year-old female patient at North Lantau Hospital, and a 90-year-old woman who succumbed to complications from the disease at Queen Elizabeth Hospital.

A total of 852 confirmed patients are still being treated in 22 public hospitals and at the treatment facility in AsiaWorld-Expo. Of this number, 34 are in critical condition, 32 are serious, and the remaining 786 patients are in stable condition.