By The SUN
Albert Au of CHP and Larry Lee of HA at the Covid press briefing Wednesday
Health authorities have reported 313 new Covid-19
cases Wednesday and three related deaths, including a 59-year-old man who was
found unconscious in his room at the Penny’s Bay isolation facility.
Medical workers provided first aid but the patient died after being rushed to hospital on Sunday.
Dr Larry Lee of the Hospital Authority said at today’s press briefing that the man had chronic illnesses although his condition was not too bad. He tested positive on a rapid antigen test and was sent to Penny’s Bay.
Lee said the coroner will carry out an investigation.
“If patients went to the Penny's Bay isolation facility, and their health conditions changed, with medics on site unable to handle the situation, we would transfer the patient to nearby community treatment facilities or hospitals," Lee said.
But he said the HA is not the one that decides which patients get sent to isolation facilities.
“If relevant government departments think the HA can provide assessments going forward, we are willing to cooperate,” he said.
The two other fatalities are an 85-year-old man and a 90-year-old woman who both passed away on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, Dr Albert Au of the Centre for Health Protection said the infections remain on a steady but slow decline, even if Tuesday’s tally was slightly lower than today’s.
Au said the daily infections need to be reduced to the lowest possible level through social distancing measures and a higher take-up rate for Covid vaccines.
Among the new cases are 22 that were imported from abroad, including seven that were detected on arrival at Hong Kong airport.
Three of the passengers flew in from Spain via flight CX260, two from Singapore on flight TR980 and one each from Germany and India.
Of the 15 remaining patients two tested positive on tests administered at a community testing centre 12 days after their arrival while the rest were found infected during their seven-day hotel quarantine.
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| One of the isolation facilities that might be closed soon as the pandemic eases |
Asked by reporters if it was true that the government would suspend the operations of seven makeshift hospitals starting next week, Au declined to comment, saying the question should be directed to the Security Bureau.
He said that while some of the facilities may be closed, others
will have to be put on standby as new cases continue to emerge.
Labour sector lawmaker Dennis Leung made the disclosure about some facilities being closed down, which he said would result to about 5,400 staff losing their jobs.
What is definite is that five Covid vaccinations will be closed later this month due to a drastic drop in demand.
A government statement said only about 27,200 vaccine doses have been administered daily in the past week.
The statement said the inoculation centre at the University of Hong Kong will be shut on May 23 while the ones in Central Library, Kowloon Bay Sports Centre, Tsuen Wan Sports Centre and Education Bureau Kowloon Tong Education Services Centre will close on June 1.
From mid-May 21 other centers will operate at
shorter hours, with 16 offering BioNTech and the five others, Sinovac.
Two BioNTech centres for children in Sha Tin and Tsuen Wan – Yuen Chau Kok Sports Centre and Tsuen Wan Sports Centre – will be relocated from the beginning of next month.
The CUHK Medical Centre in Sha Tin and the Osman
Ramju Sadick Memorial Sports Centre in Kwai Chung will be open to children aged
between five and 11.
