Coronavirus: tent quarantine plan pitched to save time, money in Hong Kong’s Covid-19 battle
- New proposal allows more people to be quarantined, at lower cost and faster rate, than government-approved scheme, proponents say
- Government has already signed off building 750 mostly prefabricated units at three locations in city
A group of architects and town planners in Hong Kong have proposed quarantining people in tents rather than prefabricated buildings for the fight against the coronavirus.
Backers of the rival scheme have said that would allow the authorities to set up anti-contagion camps faster and at a lower cost than under existing plans for the city.
It was put forward after the government revealed it had awarded more than HK$330 million worth of contracts to build or convert 750 mostly prefabricated units at three locations in Hong Kong.
Some 120 units will be ready in Lei Yue Mun Park and Holiday Village by mid-March, but it is estimated the remainder will not be operational until April or May.
Town planner Camille Lam Tsz-kwan, representing five members from the architectural and planning sector, said they had estimated it would cost less than HK$100 million to set up 1,200 tents as well as water, electricity and sewage infrastructure.
While the prefabricated units could take over a month to install, Lam said the tents – each three metres in width and length and made of high quality material – could be up and running within three weeks, and could be reused after disinfection.
Tents would also be easier to remove once the facilities were no longer needed and would generate less construction waste, the group said.
