People wear face masks as they visit a promenade on the Kowloon side of Victoria Harbour, which faces the skyline of Hong Kong Island, in Hong Kong on July 13, 2020. (ANTHONY WALLACE / AFP)

HONG KONG - Hong Kong reported 19 new coronavirus cases on Wednesday, including 14 that were locally transmitted, as new social distancing measures came into force and as authorities warned that the risk of a large-scale outbreak remained high.

READ MORE: HK banks urge staff to work at home as virus spikes

Hong Kong also reported two more deaths from the coronavirus in one day, taking the total number of COVID-19 related deaths in the city to 10. 

The two cases involved a 90-year-old woman with underlying heart disease and diabetes, and an 89-year-old man with chronic illness.

We don’t want anyone to feel like the local infection situation is easing. The number of new local cases may actually be quite high based on the high preliminary number.

Chuang Shuk-kwan, head of Center for Health Protection's Communicable Disease Branch

Wednesday’s infection number dropped substantially from Tuesday’s 48 new cases. And though the number of local cases more than halved from Tuesday's 20, that doesn’t include the 37 patients who tested positive on a preliminary basis on Wednesday.

Authorities could not trace how half of the people contracted the disease among the confirmed local cases, raising the risk that the virus will continue to spread undetected.

The newly reported cases brought the city's COVID-19 tally to 1,588.

“We don’t want anyone to feel like the local infection situation is easing,” said Chuang Shuk-kwan, head of the Center for Health Protection's Communicable Disease Branch. “The number of new local cases may actually be quite high based on the high preliminary number.” 

Since many of the recently confirmed cases involved elderly people, Cheung urged them to go out less.

The announcement came on the heels of Hong Kong implementing its strictest suite of social distancing measures as the government tries to keep the outbreak from spiraling out of control. Up until early this month, Hong Kong was widely seen globally as a model of success in containing the virus, with only 15 cases of local transmission from May through June.

Starting Wednesday, bars, gyms and beaches were shut, public gatherings were limited to four people, and people refusing to wear masks on public transportation will be fined.

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According to Hong Kong's Hospital Authority, as of Wednesday noon 1,241 patients with confirmed or probable COVID-19 infection have been discharged from hospital upon recovery, and 315 confirmed patients remain hospitalized.  

Since late January, the global financial hub has reported more than 1,500 cases and eight deaths.