Hong Kong launches anti-epidemic bus fleet to ferry coronavirus patients to quarantine, 249 cases transported on first day
- The scheme will allow the city’s overstretched ambulance service to divert cases to the bus fleet for transport from their residences to isolation facilities
- According to a transport sector lawmaker, each bus can only carry one household at a time, and drivers are required to wear full protective gear
A transport fleet comprising coaches and minibuses in Hong Kong ferried more than 240 Covid-19 patients to quarantine hotels and other isolation facilities on the first day of its launch, as part of a government drive to ease the strain on ambulance services amid an exponential surge in infections.
The so-called anti-epidemic bus fleet, comprising about 160 medium-sized coaches and 40 green minibuses, will carry coronavirus patients with mild symptoms to their designated quarantine venues from 8am to 8pm.
The department said on Monday it had diverted some 249 cases to the fleet.
Under the scheme, the recently overstretched ambulance arm of the Fire Services Department will be able divert cases to the designated bus fleet for transport from their residences to the designated venues.
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The bus scheme is similar to the 300-strong anti-epidemic taxi fleet launched on Friday to transport patients with mild symptoms for treatment at seven designated clinics – a move aimed at taking some of the pressure off of the city’s strained public health care system.
The coach and minibus drivers, however, are expected to earn more than the taxi drivers – who receive HK$3,000 (US$385) a day to take part – as they are working longer hours.
Lawmaker Frankie Yick Chi-ming, representing the transport sector, said each anti-pandemic bus could only carry one household of patients at a time, and drivers were required to wear full protective gear, including masks, face shields and gowns.
“The drivers have to take a daily rapid antigen test every morning before they start work. They need to change their protective gear and thoroughly disinfect their vehicles after every trip,” he said. “We have already sprayed an antivirus coating on the fleet’s exteriors to provide further protection against Covid-19. The passengers are also not allowed to have contact with the drivers.”
To reduce infection risks, passengers must also sit in the back, and all the windows must be kept open to maintain air circulation.
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Yick said the government would provide an insurance policy for the drivers and increase the number of designated vehicles if necessary.
Public Omnibus Operators Association chairman Matthew Wong Leung-pak said they would make meal arrangements for the drivers.
“The drivers will be arranged to have lunch at a designated venue at the Kwai Chung container terminal. We will have people dispatching lunchboxes for them to save them the trouble of buying lunch for themselves,” he said. “Our aim is to transport these patients to their designated quarantine venues as quickly as we can.”
