HK on target to get first Covid-10 vaccine end of Feb

By The SUN

Nip says the vaccination will start in early March

Hong Kong remains on track to receive its first batch of one million doses of Covid-19 vaccine BioNTech by the end of this month, and the inoculation will begin by early March.

This was disclosed by Civil Service Secretary Patrick Nip in a television show this morning, Feb. 14. He said the government had already completed a trial run from storage and transportation to actual vaccination, to ensure a safe and orderly kickoff.

A least one Community Vaccination Centre will be set up in each of the 18 districts, with those having a bigger population likely to get more than one, said Nip.

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First on the priority list for the vaccine are residents and staff in care homes, followed by other medical frontliners and seniors aged 60 and above, then those aged 16-59 with existing medical conditions.

Meanwhile, health officials reported 12 new Covid-19 cases during the daily press briefing today, Feb 14, the same number as yesterday.

The new cases, consisting of five men and seven women, brought to 10,780 the total coronavirus tally in Hong Kong since Jan 23 last year.

There are now 5 cases linked to the Mirador cluster

They include three more positive cases found at Mirador Mansion in Tsim Sha Tsui. The three, who are all mainland women, live in the same unit on the 10^th floor of the building. They are said to be friends with another patient in the building who was found infected on Friday.

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The four mainlanders have also been in contact with another patient who live in nearby Tsim Sha Tsui Mansion who tested positive yesterday.

Initially, health officials had described them as holders of recognizance papers.

Also among today’s cases is a 46-year-old unemployed man on recognizance who tested positive during compulsory testing. He lives in a subdivided flat at 267, To Kwa Wan Road, Kowloon City.

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Dr. Albert Au from the Centre for Health Protection said two of the new cases were imported. Of the 10 local cases, four were found in community testing centers and mobile stations. Seven were linked to previous cases while three were of unknown sources.

He said the two imported cases were an Albanian air crew who arrived from Turkey on Feb and tested positive at the airport, and an Indonesian domestic helper who was found infected on her 12^th day in quarantine.

Among the untraceable cases is a 35-year-old hairstylist at RTHK who has serviced studio staff and guests, including those who appeared on TV.

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Au said the man last worked on Feb 11 and exhibited upper respiratory tract symptom. He went to a community testing center on Feb 12 and was confirmed positive yesterday.

More than 20 other staff and guests at RTHK who were at the workplace during the incubation period have been listed as close contacts and will be quarantined.

The man lives on Fubo block in Saddle Ridge Garden, Ma On Shan, prompting the CHP to list the building for compulsory testing.

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Another case with unknown source was a 32-year-old female clerk in a Yuen Long company. More than 10 of her co-employees were listed as close contacts and will be quarantined.

She lives in Block 1, Po Sing Centre, Shek Lei Kwai Chung, which has now been added to the compulsory testing list.

Dr Lau Ka-hin from the Hospital Authority said 359 confirmed patients are confined in 23 public hospitals and the treatment facility at AsiaWorld Expo. They include 21 who are in critical condition, 17 in serious condition and 321 in stable condition.

Dr Tsui Tak-yi, Undersecretary for Food and Health, said a total of 368 cases had been recorded in the past 14 days. from Jan 31 to Feb 13. These include 320 local cases of which 101 are from unknown sources.