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Tuesday, March 16, 2021, 13:11
HK tally 30, US consulate couple tests preliminarily positive
By Wang Zhan
Tuesday, March 16, 2021, 13:11 By Wang Zhan

People line up outside City Hall in Central  for COVID-19 testing on March 15, 2021. (CALVIN NG/CHINA DAILY)

HONG KONG - A couple working for the United States consulate tested preliminarily positive for COVID-19 as the city recorded 30 new virus cases on Monday.

The couple, a 40-year-old man and a 41-year-old woman, were identified during a mandatory testing operation that ended on Monday morning, Albert Au Ka-wing, principal medical and health officer of the Centre for Health Protection’s communicable disease branch, said at a media briefing.

Hong Kong had 30 new COVID-19 cases on Monday, including 16 local infections, bringing the city’s tally of confirmed cases to 11,311

The couple was asymptomatic and last went to work on Friday, he added. 

Au said they arrived in Hong Kong in September and recently visited Stazione Novella, a bar in Central, on Wednesday and Bones and Blades, a restaurant in Sai Kung, on March 3. The couple was among more than 10 persons who tested preliminarily positive on Monday, Au said.

ALSO READ: HK logs 47 new virus cases, most linked to gym cluster

Their three family members, who lived together at Dynasty Court, were classified as close contacts and quarantined.

Au said the new cases included 16 local infections, bringing the city’s tally of confirmed cases to 11,311. Thirteen of the new infections were linked to the cluster that originated from Ursus Fitness, he added.

Au said the cluster has ballooned to involve 122 confirmed patients, including 85 patrons, seven employees and 30 close contacts. Around 860 people linked to the cluster were under quarantine.

The sole untraceable case involved an 81-year-old resident of Pine Care (Tak Fung) Elderly Centre in Prince Edward, he said. Twenty-eight of his fellow residents and 16 employees were quarantined.

Members of the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment of Hong Kong (DAB) petition outside government headquarters on March 15, 2021 to complain about a couple who works at the US Consulate General in Hong Kong and Macau, and who tested preliminarily positive for COVID-19, but refused quarantine arrangements on the grounds of diplomatic immunity. (CALVIN NG / CHINA DAILY)

Meanwhile,a targeted testing operation along a stretch of Pok Fu Lam Road in Mid-levels yielded a case awaiting verification after around 680 residents were tested there. The stretch is near Ursus Fitness - a gym that has been linked to a cluster of at least 109 confirmed cases.

The latest outbreak has also affected a number of international schools and financial institutions, as well as other fitness centers in the city. 

READ MORE: HK sees 24 new cases, more than 20 test preliminarily positive

On Monday night, the government cordoned off several buildings in the Central and Western District and in Sai Ying Pun for targeted COVID-19 testing operations.

In a statement, the government said it cordoned off at 9 pm Golden Phoenix Court, 1-2 St. Stephen's Lane; and Blocks A and M, Hing Wah Mansion, 1 Babington Path, in Central and Western District for residents to undergo compulsory testing. 

The government urged residents to get tested before 2 am Tuesday and that it planned to finish the operation by 7 am.

In Sai Ying Pun, the government cordoned off Manifold Court, 36-46 Pok Fu Lam Road; True Light Building, 100-106 Third Street; High Park 99, 99 High Street; and Wing Cheung Building, 19-29 Western Street.

Residents should get tested by 12:30 am Tuesday and that the operation should be finished by 8 am, the government added. 

As of Sunday, around 157,200 Hong Kong residents had received their first doses of Sinovac vaccine with 33,500 receiving BioNTech shots. Twelve new community vaccination centers will open on Tuesday to provide BioNTech jabs.


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