Hong Kong relaxes social-distancing rules as city confirms lowest number of new Covid-19 cases in nearly two months
- Dine-in hours at restaurants to be extended by an hour, while gyms to be allowed to reopen from Friday
- Eight new infections confirmed on Wednesday, the lowest since five were reported on July 3, but two cases linked to Mong Kok hotel cause concern
But despite signs of the coronavirus crisis easing, the government cancelled the annual National Day fireworks display on October 1 because of the pandemic, the second time in a row after it was called off last year due to the city’s social unrest.
Although just eight new infections – all locally transmitted – were confirmed on Wednesday, a small Covid-19 cluster of two cases emerged at the Metropark Hotel in Mong Kok, one of whom was an 87-year-old man who was found to have the virus after his death.
Nine residents, some hotel employees and mortuary staff would have to undergo quarantine because of the case. The incident also raised concerns as to whether mortuary workers had received enough training on when to wear protective gear.
The new infections, the lowest amount since five new cases were reported on July 3, pushed the city’s tally to 4,830. Two other male patients, aged 66 and 79, died on Wednesday. Along with the 87-year-old patient from the hotel who was given a post-mortem diagnosis, the total number of fatalities linked to Covid-19 stood at 93.
Meanwhile, none of the participants in the mass screening programme, which started on Tuesday, had tested positive as of Wednesday morning. By 8pm, about 798,000 people – more than 10 per cent of the entire population – had registered online for the voluntary programme.
