(To watch the full press briefing with sign language interpretation, click here.)

The Centre for Health Protection today said it is investigating 4,285 additional COVID-19 cases, of which 21 are imported and the rest are locally infected.

A total of 12,344 positive cases were reported in Hong Kong over the past 14 days, comprising 94 imported and 12,250 locally acquired infections.

At a press briefing this afternoon, Hospital Authority Chief Manager (Patient Safety & Risk Management) Dr Sara Ho said 90% of the isolation facilities are utilised, reaching the authority’s limit.

“We observed that some patients are waiting outdoors. This is far from satisfactory. We are very sorry for letting the elderly wait outdoors in such unfavourable conditions. That is why we are also trying to explore different waiting areas for them.”

She said the authority is taking measures to make hospitals less congested in order to reduce the risk of infection there.

“For the RCHEs (residential care home for the elderly), those residents who attended the accident and emergency department because of non-COVID-19 reasons, after initial assessment, if we find they are stable, we will transfer them, let them rest and let them go back to the residential care home for the elderly.

“At the same time, we will arrange for the CGAT (Community Geriatric Assessment Team) to reassess the patient.

“I hope these measures can decrease the congestion in hospitals and also decrease the risk of nosocomial infection in the hospitals. This, at the same time, can alleviate the congestion in the hospitals.”

Additionally, nine patients confirmed with COVID-19 infection passed away. Apart from a 100-year-old woman and a three-year-old girl who were announced yesterday, the other seven patients include three men and four women aged between 37 and 97.

The Government also made restriction-testing declarations this afternoon to cover Yiu Ping House, Yiu On Estate in Sha Tin and Mun Wo House, Mun Tung Estate in Tung Chung, requiring people in the restricted areas to undergo compulsory testing.

It made the decision after sewage discharged from the two buildings tested positive for the virus and preliminary positive patients who lived in Mun Wo House were detected recently.

Positive sewage test results were found at Ching Long House, Ching Ho Estate in Sheung Shui and more than 30 people in the building have preliminarily tested positive for the virus, so the Government has extended the restriction-testing declaration period to tomorrow.

Regarding the positive sewage test results found in several areas in Sham Shui Po, Sha Tin and Yuen Long, the Home Affairs Department will distribute COVID-19 rapid test kits to all cleansing workers and property management staff working in those areas from tomorrow.

In view of a number of preliminary positive and positive cases, 28 specified places are included in a compulsory testing notice.

Free testing services will be provided for people subject to mandatory testing at community testing centres and mobile specimen collection stations located at 61 places in the city tomorrow.

Starting tomorrow, the Government will set up an additional mobile specimen collection station at Kennedy Town Playground.

For information and health advice on COVID-19, visit the Government's dedicated webpage.