Hong Kong third wave: daily coronavirus tally drops to 18, lowest in six weeks

Fall may have been related to Typhoon Higos, which made collecting test samples difficult, senior health official says

Clusters at the main port and boarding houses for domestic helpers continued to grow

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Eighteen confirmed infections on Thursday represents Hong Kong’s lowest tally since July 7, though clinic closures a day earlier may have played a role. Photo: Sam Tsang

Published: 12:12pm, 20 Aug 2020Updated: 6:22am, 21 Aug 2020

The number of daily coronavirus infections in Hong Kong fell to its lowest level in six weeks with 18 cases confirmed on Thursday, although clusters at the main port and boarding houses for domestic helpers continued to grow.

All but one of the latest cases were locally transmitted, with the sole imported one being a person arriving from India. The city’s tally stands at 4,604, while three more Covid-19 patients died, taking the number of related fatalities to 75.

But health authorities cautioned the drop in cases could be related to the citywide disruption caused by Typhoon Higos, which hit late Tuesday.

“The figure was possibly related to the typhoon,” said Dr Chuang Shuk-kwan, head of the communicable disease branch at the Centre for Health Protection. “Some people might not have been able to return their samples [on Wednesday].”

The latest confirmed cases are the fewest since July 7 when 14 were recorded.

Among the newly infected were two Indonesian domestic helpers who stayed at boarding houses tied to existing clusters – Cheung Hing Mansion in Mong Kok and a dormitory in Tsuen Wan.