Government workers will clear the street in the Jordan area on January 25th.
Photographer: Chan Long Hei / Bloomberg
Photographer: Chan Long Hei / Bloomberg
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Hong Kong noted more blockades in the future after considering its first such measure, imposed on an area of Kowloon over the weekend, successfully detecting 13 new cases.
The closure, which affected 10,000 people, lasted for two days in the Yau Ma Tei and Jordan areas of Kowloon, where about 7,000 residents were tested.
The order was effective in identifying infected patients and isolating them quickly and their close contacts, Food and Health Secretary Sophia Chan said in a media briefing on Sunday. “If there is such a need, we obviously do not rule out the possibility of a future operation like this,” he said.
The unprecedented operation was announced in the early hours of Saturday before it went into effect and involved more than 3,000 government officials from 16 departments. Residents were not allowed to leave the area until the tests were completed, although those who had a negative test result were able to leave from Sunday evening.
Before media reports a more severe blockade was released on Friday, raising the Hang Seng index 1.6% lower, its biggest drop in nearly two months. The South China Morning Post said the measure would affect tens of thousands of people and even include parts of Sham Shui Po, but later downplayed its report.
The measure is a way out for a city that resisted a more aggressive stance before the pandemic, although it is still evident compared to the blockades adopted in mainland China, where people are sometimes banned from leaving cities, districts or even their apartment complexes.
A resident leaves the blockade zone in Jordan, allowed with a negative test of Covid-19 on January 24th.
Photographer: Chan Long Hei / Bloomberg
In a government statement issued Monday morning hope that “this temporary inconvenience will completely cut off the district’s local transmission chains and alleviate residents’ concerns and fears.”
From January 1 to 20, a total of 162 positive cases were recorded in the blockade zone, involving 56 buildings, according to the statement.
“The government will use this restriction with a mandatory test order when necessary,” chief executive Carrie Lam said at a briefing on Saturday. Officials will improve the way these plans are communicated, including the timing of the announcements, Lam said, adding that he will not rule out the measure being taken again.