Hong Kong to enforce mass testing amid predicted surge in COVID infections By Reuters

By Twinnie Siu and Farah Grasp

HONG KONG (Reuters) -Hong Kong will roll out obligatory testing for COVID-19 beginning in mid-March for its 7.4 million residents, chief Carrie Lam mentioned on Tuesday, as college researchers predicted new infections might peak at a staggering 180,000 a day subsequent month.

Stringent coronavirus guidelines can be in place till mid-April with colleges breaking early for summer time and resuming the brand new yr in August, she mentioned, as authorities battle an “exponential” rise in infections which have overwhelmed the healthcare system.

Hong Kong is house to among the most densely populated districts on Earth, with nearly all of folks dwelling in high-rise condominium blocks cheek by jowl with members of the family and sometimes sharing cramped lifts.

“The approaching one to 3 months are essential in preventing the pandemic,” Lam advised a press briefing.

Residents would want to check thrice beneath the obligatory testing scheme with day by day testing capability reaching a million. Venues together with college campuses could possibly be used for testing and isolation, she mentioned.

The measures are essentially the most draconian to be applied, two years into the pandemic within the international monetary hub.

Lam reiterated the town’s “dynamic zero COVID” technique just like mainland China, aiming to eradicate any outbreaks in any respect prices. She repeatedly thanked mainland authorities for his or her “staunch assist.”

She mentioned authorities weren’t contemplating a city-wide lockdown, like these in mainland China. The central authorities would nonetheless assist to construct a brief hospital.

Well being authorities within the former British colony reported 6,211 new circumstances, 32 deaths and an extra 9,369 circumstances that got here up optimistic in preliminary assessments. They mentioned a backlog in testing meant they had been unable to get a full image.

In a paper titled “Modelling the fifth wave of COVID-19 in Hong Kong”, researchers on the College of Hong Kong mentioned they up to date their Feb. 10 research to indicate the variety of day by day deaths probably peaking at close to 100 by late March, and cumulative deaths probably rising to round 3,206 by mid-Might.

Infections might peak at 180,000 a day.

Lower than two weeks in the past, the identical researchers had predicted day by day infections probably peaking at round 28,000 by mid-March with a complete of 954 deaths by the tip of June.

Within the absence of rather more intensive social distancing measures, like a city-wide lockdown, “the trajectory of the fifth wave is unlikely to alter considerably from its present course”, the research mentioned.

Hong Kong has reported that because the begin of February day by day infections have surged by round 70 instances, overwhelming the federal government’s testing, hospital and quarantine capacities, because it makes an attempt to stifle the virus.

SOCIAL DISTANCING

Hong Kong already has among the world’s hardest guidelines to curb COVID-19. Stringent restrictions imply that only a few flights are capable of land whereas most transit passengers are banned.

Lam mentioned a flight ban from 9 nations together with the USA and Britain would stay in place till April 20 with different nations probably being added to the checklist.

Gatherings of greater than two persons are banned and most venues, together with colleges, gyms and sweetness salons, are closed.

July-August holidays for colleges, that are conducting classes on-line, can be introduced ahead to March-April. Lam mentioned she hoped face-to-face lessons might happen from April, with the brand new college yr starting as regular in August.

The restrictions, which had been first imposed in 2020, are testing the persistence of residents, as fatigue and anxiousness units in with companies throughout the town reeling from the closures.

In whole the town has reported over 60,000 infections, far lower than different related main cities. Nevertheless a big proportion of the susceptible aged inhabitants stay unvaccinated.

Lam mentioned the town’s vaccination price ought to attain round 90% for one dose by March, up from round 86% at the moment.

“Keep assured and we’ll see the rainbow,” Lam mentioned.

The research anticipated that the variety of contaminated folks in 7-day isolation might probably attain over 600,000, whereas the variety of shut contacts in seven-day quarantine might attain 1.8 million, resulting in a considerable disruption in society.