Coronavirus: Hong Kong textile industry producing nearly 3,000 handmade reusable fabric masks amid acute shortage of face coverings

Industry lawmaker Felix Chung hopes to provide alternatives as soon as possible to relieve people’s panic amid short supply of protective gear

But Hu Jinlian, a PolyU professor who studies medical textiles, is sceptical about their effectiveness against airborne viruses

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Hong Kong is experiencing an acute shortage of face masks amid the coronavirus outbreak. Photo: May Tse

Published: 12:00pm, 10 Feb 2020Updated: 1:30pm, 10 Feb 2020

Hong Kong’s textile industry is manufacturing its first batch of up to 3,000 handmade reusable fabric masks and hopes to distribute them among members of the city’s vulnerable groups later this week amid the coronavirus outbreak, the lawmaker for the sector has said.

The effort is aimed at easing an acute shortage of surgical masks in the city, though a medical textile expert warned fabric masks would not be effective in filtering the virus that killed one and infected at least 29 in Hong Kong.

Textile and garment industry lawmaker Felix Chung Kwok-pan showed to the Post samples of freshly finished face masks made of three fabrics that were said to be effective in protecting the wearer against large droplets and airborne particles and were antibacterial after washing them up to 50 times.

But he admitted that the masks had not yet been scientifically proven to stop the airborne virus originated in the Chinese city of Wuhan.

Textile and garment industry lawmaker Felix Chung shows a handmade washable face mask. Photo: Nora Tam

“We know the materials are not meant to block the virus,” he said, “But our sector hopes to provide alternatives as fast as we can to relieve people’s panic amid the government’s fumbling response in mask supply.”

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