HONG KONG-The Hong Kong Department of Health confirmed six new cases of the novel coronavirus pneumonia on Wednesday, bringing the city’s tally to 91.
Two of the newly confirmed patients were passengers stranded on the coronavirus-stricken Diamond Princess cruise ship. They are a 21-year-old woman and her 16-year-old brother, who returned to Hong Kong from Japan by the third government-chartered flight on Sunday.
The teenager is the city’s youngest diagnosed patient, and one of the seven Diamond Princess passengers who had been confirmed infected after their return to the city.
Three newly confirmed cases were linked to a North Point worship hall, including an 80-year-old man, the husband of the city’s 74th patient, who recently visited the Buddhist hall; and the 26-year-old son of the city’s 76th patient, who also visited the temple. A 49-year-old housewife who works as a volunteer at the hall was also confirmed infected.
This brings the number of cases linked to the Fook Wai Ching She temple to 12, including eight people who visited the hall. Located on the 13th floor of Maylun Mansions on Shu Kuk Street, the temple is run by volunteers, with worshippers occasionally gathering for meals.
Chuang Shuk-kwan, who heads the Communicable Disease Branch of the Department of Health, told a regular news briefing on the epidemic on Wednesday there is no need to evacuate all residents who live in Maylun Mansions as the virus was not found in the public areas, and the current transmission trace is in line with expectations.
Another infection case confirmed on Wednesday is a domestic helper working for the 85th patient, who on Monday was confirmed to have contracted the virus.
Also on Wednesday, the Hong Kong government announced the registration arrangement for the city’s residents who are stranded in Hubei province, the epicenter of the outbreak, and wish to take the first charter flight back to Hong Kong.
Stranded residents are required to finish the registration via hotline or email before Friday evening. The government’s liaison office in the provincial capital, Wuhan, will arrange for vehicles to send them to the airport, and will pay all the expenses.
The government is also studying the feasibility of bringing home people with urgent needs on its first flight, which was chartered mostly to bring back residents stranded in Wuhan who had sought help from the SAR government.
The cases include pregnant women, those who have serious illnesses and are urgently in need of surgery or medical treatments, and students who need to take the Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education Examination in the city.
