bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

paywallTypes

createdDate

publishedDate

urlAlias

moreOnThisArticles

sponsorType

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

articleSpeeches

socialHeadline

headline

images

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

People wearing face masks were spotted all over the city yesterday as Hongkongers braced for an outbreak of the deadly swine flu virus after the first case was confirmed on Friday. 
The airport was full of travellers wearing face masks as they walked into the arrivals hall. And it was much the same in shopping malls and on public transport. 
Bus and taxi drivers, MTR station staff, waiters and others whose work brings them into close contact with others, are all taking precautions to protect their health.
The demand for better hygiene habits has turned into a lucrative opportunity for pharmacies as people empty shelves of face masks, alcoholic cleansing gels and other disinfectants.  
Business did particularly well at shops around the Metropark Hotel, where the first  case of swine flu  was found.
The manager of Honorex Pharmacy, which is opposite the hotel, said sales of face masks at his shop surged 30 per cent in three days. 'Face masks and alcoholic gel are the most sought-after items,' he said. 'I think sales will do well this week.' 
He said he had bought a few thousand face masks over the past few days because of the demand. The price of face masks was the same but not many could be found at convenience stores and a supermarket near the hotel.
 A face mask costs HK$2 at 7-Eleven stores, and  a pack of 50 masks were sold for between HK$60 and HK$88 at several pharmacies in Wan Chai.
To help reassure the public,  the Hong Kong Football Association gave out  masks to the 500 fans at yesterday's two First Division soccer matches at Mong Kok Stadium.
'We did this as a precautionary measure,' said Lam Shing-kui,  the association's deputy general secretary. 'Spectators would have been in close contact with each other had the stadium been packed, but today the   ... crowd was not that big.'
Mong Kok Stadium has 7,200 seats. About 30 spectators were seen wearing masks yesterday.
Shane Solomon, the Hospital Authority's chief executive,  said the department had enough masks for staff for 174 days and protective coats for 42 days. If needed,  up to 30 million face masks could be made available, Mr Solomon said.



Face masks return to the streets as people brace for an outbreak of the deadly virus