Hong Kong Records Daily Infections COVID-19: Hospitals 90 Percent Filled, Isolation Facilities Almost Full

Illustration of COVID-19 in Hong Kong. (Wikimedia Commons/Studio Incendo)

JAKARTA - Hong Kong reported a record number of new daily COVID-19 infections on Friday and China said it would fully support the city with its 'zero dynamic' Coronavirus strategy, as local authorities struggle to contain the deepening outbreak.

Hong Kong's Chief Secretary, John Lee, Health Minister, Sophia Chan, and Chief of Security, Chris Tang, will meet with Chinese officials in Shenzhen on Saturday to discuss support measures, the government said in a statement.

The meeting comes as Hong Kong's efforts to achieve zero COVID infections, pushing the burden on hospital and quarantine facilities almost to its limit, open up the prospect of near-term changes to its admissions and isolation policies.

Hong Kong's health authority said it recorded an increase of 1,325 infections on Friday. He said separately there were at least 1,500 initial positive cases.

"Our health care system is overloaded, completely beyond capacity", Chuang Shuk-kwan, a senior health official, told Reuters on February 11.

Hospital beds for COVID-19 patients in Hong Kong are 90 percent occupied, data from the Hong Kong Hospital Authority shows, while isolation facilities are also nearing maximum.

China's central government is very concerned about the safety and health of the population as well as the economy and people's livelihoods, a spokesman for the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office (HKMAO), which is under China's State Council or cabinet, said in a statement. statement.

It said the Chinese government would help support Hong Kong's fight against the disease.

"As long as Hong Kong asks, the motherland will definitely answer. Hand in hand, we will definitely be able to overcome the epidemic soon", he continued.

The Chinese government will help boost Hong Kong's testing capabilities and set up another quarantine facility, the South China Morning Post reported, citing a Beijing-based source.

Mainland China is also preparing to send thousands of medical and laboratory workers and millions of test kits to Hong Kong, with daily Coronavirus screening capacity to be increased from 100,000 tests to 300,000 tests.

Hong Kong has seen a 10-fold increase in infection cases since February 1, with medical experts warning the city could see 28,000 daily infections by the end of March, with unvaccinated older people a particular concern.

Five elderly people infected with COVID-19 died this week, authorities said after there had been no COVID-19-related deaths since September last year. In total, the city has recorded around 20,000 infections and 218 deaths, still significantly lower than other similar major cities.