A photo taken through thick glass shows passengers, center, wearing face masks as a precautionary measure against the COVID-19 coronavirus as they receive quarantine tracking wrist bands at Hong Kong’s international airport, March 19, 2020. (ANTHONY WALLACE / AFP)

The rush of Hong Kong's residents returning from pandemic-stricken regions in Europe and North America has pushed the confirmed cases of coronavirus infection on Sunday to the second highest daily record of 44, just four cases less than the number recorded on Friday. 

The city's total tally now stands at 317. 

Speaking at a daily press conference on the outbreak, head of the Department of Health’s Communicable Disease Branch Chuang Shuk-kwan said that 29 of the patients confirmed on Sunday had traveled overseas during the incubation period. Seven of them were students returning from overseas. 

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Since Saturday, the two testing centers at the AsiaWorld-Expo and North Lantau Hospital have detected six confirmed cases and four who initially tested positive

Of the 15 patients who have no travel history, four had attended parties in Lan Kwai Fong, a popular bar district in Central, said Chuang.

Two teachers, who led a local secondary school tour to Switzerland were confirmed to have contracted the disease. After they came back, the wife and a friend of one of the infected teachers, and two of the infected teachers’ colleagues have contracted the disease. 

So far, none of the students who joined the tour have developed symptoms of the disease. 

Two persons who had attended a local wedding banquet held at a hotel in Discovery Bay on March 14 were infected along with six other guests who were earlier tested positive of the disease.  

The Hospital Authority Chief Manager (Clinical Effectiveness and Technology Management) Linda Yu called on all persons required to undergo home quarantine to strictly comply with the rules.

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Since Saturday, the two testing centers at the AsiaWorld-Expo and North Lantau Hospital have detected six confirmed cases and four that initially tested positive.  

As of Sunday, a total of 205 passengers arriving at the airport with fever and respiratory syndromes were sent to the centers for virus testing. More than 1,000 containers were distributed to passengers to collect deep throat saliva for later testing.