bodyType

customContents

entityId

printArticlePageQuery

filter

article

body

urlAlias

articleSectionsContent

articleSeoArticle

articleSourceHeaderArticle

contentSchemaRenderContent

contentSubHeadlineContent

contentHeadlineContent

mainImagePrintArticleArticle

authorBlockPrintArticleArticle

contentSponsorTagContent

articlePianoPaywallContent

scmpYoutubeContent

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

query printArticlePageQuery(
  $entityId: String!
  $customContents: [CustomContentInput]
  $bodyType: BodyFormatTypeEnum
) {
  article(filter: {entityId: $entityId}) {
    entityId
    body(customContents: $customContents, type: $bodyType) {
      json
    }
    urlAlias
    ...articleSectionsContent
    ...articleSeoArticle_3o8td4
    ...articleSourceHeaderArticle
    ...contentSchemaRenderContent
    ...contentSubHeadlineContent
    ...contentHeadlineContent
    ...mainImagePrintArticleArticle
    ...authorBlockPrintArticleArticle
    ...contentSponsorTagContent
    ...articlePianoPaywallContent
    ...scmpYoutubeContent
    ...hooksTrackPageViewArticle
    id
  }
}

fragment articlePianoPaywallContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...hooksPaywallPromiseContent
}

fragment articleSectionsContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  sections {
    value {
      ...helpersCheckIfNewsSectionInFirstIndexSection
      ...entityLink
      name
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment articleSeoArticle_3o8td4 on Article {
  ...hooksArticleSeoArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle
  ...helpersGetArticleTypeArticle
  entityId
  publishedDate
  updatedDate
  summary {
    text
  }
  subHeadline {
    text
  }
  body(customContents: $customContents, type: $bodyType) {
    text
  }
  keywords
  sections {
    value {
      name
      id
    }
  }
  topics {
    name
    entityId
    id
  }
  urlAlias
  authors {
    name
    id
  }
  images {
    style(filter: {style: "768x768"}) {
      url
    }
  }
  readingTime
}

fragment articleSourceHeaderArticle on Article {
  urlAlias
  ...entityLink
}

fragment authorBlockPrintArticleArticle on Article {
  ...defaultArticleDateContent
  ...authorNamesArticle
}

fragment authorNameAuthor on Author {
  ...entityLink
  name
  entityUuid
}

fragment authorNamesArticle on Article {
  authorLocations
  authors {
    entityId
    location
    ...authorNameAuthor
    id
  }
}

fragment blockquoteQuoteContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...contentShareWidgetContent
}

fragment checkersCheckContentContainsStarlingImageContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  topics {
    entityId
    id
  }
}

fragment contentHeadlineContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  headline
  socialHeadline
  ...contentHeadlineTagContent
  ...helpersUseContentSponsorContent
}

fragment contentHeadlineTagContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...hooksContentHeadlineTagContent
}

fragment contentNewsletterWidgetContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  topics {
    relatedNewsletters {
      ...helpersMassageToNewsletterItemNewsletter
      id
    }
    id
  }
  sections {
    value {
      relatedNewsletters {
        ...helpersMassageToNewsletterItemNewsletter
        id
      }
      id
    }
  }
  ... on Article {
    relatedNewsletters {
      ...helpersMassageToNewsletterItemNewsletter
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment contentSchemaRenderContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...blockquoteQuoteContent
  ...imageContent
  ...inlineWidgetContent
  ...photoGalleryWidgetContent
  ...scmpYoutubeContent
}

fragment contentShareWidgetContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  entityId
  urlAlias
  shortUrl
  socialHeadline
  headline
}

fragment contentSponsorTagContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...helpersUseContentSponsorContent
}

fragment contentSubHeadlineContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  subHeadline {
    json
  }
  summary {
    json
  }
  ...contentSchemaRenderContent
}

fragment defaultArticleDateContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...hooksArticleDateUtilsContent
}

fragment entityLink on BaseWithApplicationAndUrlAlias {
  __isBaseWithApplicationAndUrlAlias: __typename
  __typename
  entityId
  entityUuid
  urlAlias
  urlRedirect {
    toUrl
    id
  }
  application {
    entityId
    id
  }
  ... on Section {
    fullSectionPath {
      entityId
      id
    }
    parentSection
  }
  ...helpersAppBarVariantBase
  ...helpersApplicationBase
  ...helpersCheckIsPlusArticle
  ...helpersStyleSectionContent
}

fragment helpersAppBarVariantBase on BaseWithApplicationAndUrlAlias {
  __isBaseWithApplicationAndUrlAlias: __typename
  ...helpersCheckIsLiveArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsPlusPage
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesPage
  ...helpersCheckIsPostMagazineArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsStyleArticle
  ...helpersSectionContent
  ...helpersStyleSectionContent
}

fragment helpersApplicationBase on BaseWithApplicationAndUrlAlias {
  __isBaseWithApplicationAndUrlAlias: __typename
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesPage
  ...helpersCheckIsPlusPage
}

fragment helpersCheckIfNewsSectionInFirstIndexSection on Section {
  name
}

fragment helpersCheckIsAmpEnabledArticle on Article {
  entityId
  types {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
  sections {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
  disableOffPlatformContent
  sponsorType
  published
  ...helpersCheckIsPlusArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle
}

fragment helpersCheckIsLiveArticle on Article {
  flattenTypeIds
  liveArticle {
    status
    id
  }
}

fragment helpersCheckIsMainTopicContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  topics {
    entityId
    id
  }
}

fragment helpersCheckIsPlusArticle on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ... on Article {
    paywallTypes {
      entityUuid
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment helpersCheckIsPlusPage on Page {
  urlAlias
}

fragment helpersCheckIsPostMagazineArticle on Article {
  sections {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle on Article {
  sections {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment helpersCheckIsPostiesPage on Page {
  urlAlias
}

fragment helpersCheckIsStyleArticle on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  sections {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment helpersGetArticleTypeArticle on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ... on Article {
    types {
      value {
        entityId
        id
      }
    }
  }
}

fragment helpersMassageToNewsletterItemNewsletter on Newsletter {
  entityId
  name
  alternativeName
  description {
    text
  }
  summary {
    text
  }
  homepageDescription {
    text
  }
}

fragment helpersSanitizeArticleTypeEntityIdsArticle on Article {
  types {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
}

fragment helpersSanitizeAuthorTypesArticle on Article {
  authors {
    types
    id
  }
}

fragment helpersSanitizedAuthorEntityIdsArticle on Article {
  authors {
    entityId
    id
  }
}

fragment helpersSectionContent on Section {
  fullSectionPath {
    entityId
    id
  }
}

fragment helpersStyleSectionContent on Section {
  fullSectionPath {
    entityId
    id
  }
}

fragment helpersUseContentSponsorContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  topics {
    entityId
    sponsor {
      ...sponsorTagSponsor
      name
      type
      id
    }
    id
  }
  ... on Article {
    sponsorType
  }
  ...helpersCheckIsMainTopicContent
}

fragment hooksArticleDateUtilsContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  createdDate
  publishedDate
  updatedDate
}

fragment hooksArticleSeoArticle on Article {
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsPostMagazineArticle
  ...helpersCheckIsStyleArticle
  ...hooksContentHeadlineTagContent
  ...helpersCheckIsAmpEnabledArticle
  entityId
  headline
  socialHeadline
  types {
    value {
      entityId
      id
    }
  }
  authors {
    entityId
    id
  }
  images {
    generic_og: style(filter: {style: "og_image_scmp_generic"}) {
      url
    }
    styles(filter: {styles: ["og_image_posties_article", "og_postmag", "og_image_style", "og_image_scmp_analysis", "og_image_scmp_explainer", "og_image_scmp_editorial", "og_image_scmp_fact_check", "og_image_scmp_debate", "og_image_scmp_live", "og_image_scmp_obituary", "og_image_scmp_opinion", "og_image_scmp_review", "og_image_scmp_series", "og_image_scmp_generic"]}) {
      url
      style
    }
    type
  }
  urlAlias
}

fragment hooksContentHeadlineTagContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  __typename
  ... on Article {
    types {
      value {
        name
        entityId
        description {
          text
        }
        id
      }
    }
    ...helpersCheckIsStyleArticle
  }
  flag
  sections {
    value {
      name
      id
    }
  }
  ...hooksContentHelperContent
}

fragment hooksContentHelperContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...helpersSanitizeArticleTypeEntityIdsArticle
  ...helpersSanitizeAuthorTypesArticle
  ...helpersSanitizedAuthorEntityIdsArticle
  flag
}

fragment hooksPaywallPromiseContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  entityId
  ...helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle
}

fragment hooksTrackPageViewArticle on Article {
  entityId
  publishedDate
  headline
  sections {
    value {
      name
      id
    }
  }
  urlAlias
  authors {
    name
    id
  }
  entityUuid
}

fragment imageContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  headline
  ...checkersCheckContentContainsStarlingImageContent
}

fragment inlineWidgetContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...contentNewsletterWidgetContent
}

fragment mainImagePrintArticleArticle on Article {
  images {
    title
    url
    isSlideshow
    size_652x446: style(filter: {style: "652x446"}) {
      url
    }
  }
}

fragment photoGalleryDialogContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  __typename
  ...contentShareWidgetContent
}

fragment photoGalleryWidgetContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  ...photoGalleryDialogContent
}

fragment scmpYoutubeContent on Content {
  __isContent: __typename
  entityId
  urlAlias
  publishedDate
}

fragment sponsorTagSponsor on Sponsor {
  name
  type
  images {
    url
  }
}


sections

types

disableOffPlatformContent

sponsorType

published

headline

socialHeadline

authors

images

publishedDate

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

keywords

topics

readingTime

authorLocations

entityUuid

Cannix Yau

Kanis Leung

Alvin Lum

As Hong Kong battles to keep the Wuhan coronavirus at bay, the government should not forget the dark days of the Sars outbreak 17 years ago and needs to avoid the mistakes that caused people great pain, a survivors’ group has warned.
The Hong Kong Sars Mutual Help Association, a group formed by more than 300 survivors infected by severe acute respiratory syndrome in 2003, urged the government to be proactive, including banning non-locals who have visited Wuhan within the past month from entering the city, or even denying entry to all mainland Chinese visitors if the outbreak worsens.
The association made the call as the contagious new coronavirus – a Sars-like virus – spread on the mainland from Wuhan, the outbreak epicentre. Hong Kong had recorded five confirmed cases by late Friday, and 236 other suspected cases as of 8am.
The city’s fight against the coronavirus has been an emotional reminder for many Sars survivors, who hoped the government would not repeat the missteps of 2003, said the group’s chairman Alex Lam Chi-yau.
“I am very disappointed with the government’s preventive approach. Some recent decisions only show it has taken the new virus lightly, particularly when it came to not asking rail passengers arriving from Wuhan to fill out health declaration forms with contact details,” he said.


“The Sars outbreak is a painful memory to us. The government shouldn’t forget it. Now it seems to be taking the interests of travellers above those of Hong Kong people.”
Lam said it was “unacceptable” that the government refused to ban visitors from Wuhan, knowing that their visits posed a high health risk to the city.
In 2003, Sars infected 1,755 people in Hong Kong, killing 299 including eight medical staff. Globally there were 8,437 infections and 813 deaths.
The unprecedented crisis not only highlighted the risks Hong Kong faced as a global transit hub, but also exposed the fragility of the city’s health care and prevention system.


Lam said many association members still suffered from side effects of the Sars treatment, including degenerative bone disorder caused by steroids, chronic joint pain and emotional problems.
He vividly remembers developing a fever and coughing symptoms on April 13, 2003, and being put in an isolation ward for three weeks while receiving Sars treatment.
“I am among the lucky few who fully recovered and did not develop any side effects of the treatment,” he said. “But many of our members still suffer from bone disorder, chronic pain and other joint problems because of the Sars infection.”
Wuhan residents start Year of the Rat by stockpiling food, medical supplies
Lam said the ordeal was too painful for some members even to this day. “Many have developed post-traumatic stress symptoms and don’t even want to talk about their suffering any more. Some also avoid going out to meet people,” he said.
He also called for the government to provide more help for those affected by the treatment, saying financial support for many survivors was cut off after a few years without taking into account the long-term impact.

Surging fears and the lack of information over the new virus also reminded Professor Paul Yip Siu-fai, director of the University of Hong Kong’s Centre for Suicide Research and Prevention, of the Sars period.
Yip said the suicide rate in 2003, 18.8 people per 100,000, was the highest since records began in 1981. There were 1,264 suicide deaths that year. Citing their suicide notes, he noted that some elderly people killed themselves at the time because they were worried they had contracted the virus and could spread it to their family.
He also warned that while epidemic prevention required that patients to be isolated, the mental health of those in quarantine should also be taken care of.
China sends in military doctors to help fight coronavirus outbreak
Yip said that while some activities that meant a lot to people, such as visits to the elderly at Lunar New Year, might have to be cancelled because of the situation, visitors could consider telephoning instead.
Top microbiologist Ho Pak-leung, a doctor at HKU back in 2003, recalled how nervous he was during the Sars outbreak.
Ho said the government had missed the period for epidemic prevention as it had just been an observer of the Sars outbreak when it initially broke out on the mainland.


He said officials only started to trace the original patient – a 64-year-old medical professor from Guangzhou in neighbouring Guangdong province – after medical staff in a Sha Tin hospital got infected.
“That year, [officials] were totally disconnected from medical workers and residents,” Ho said, adding that then-health minister Yeoh Eng-kiong had said Hong Kong did not have an outbreak in the community.
He felt the current health secretary and the director of health had the same problem – not being on the same page as residents and frontline medical staff.
“All the scenes in 2003 could be repeated now in a second version,” he said, referring to painful memories such as infected medical staff dying and a community outbreak.
US confirms second American patient tests positive for China coronavirus
For ordinary Hongkongers, memories of the Sars crisis are not too far away, either.
Charles (not his real name), the owner of three pharmacies, said the surge in demand for masks then was similar to during the Wuhan outbreak now.
“Back then, we had to ration masks. Let’s say we wanted 10 cartons of masks; we could maybe only get three,” Charles said.

He noted that this outbreak is during the holiday period, meaning fewer workers to move supplies of masks.
“A lot of logistics companies are off during the holidays, so some supplies are still on the mainland,” he said. “Things may only improve after they return to work on the eighth or tenth day of the Lunar New Year.”
He said a reasonable price for masks was about HK$60 to HK$80 (US8 to US$10) for 50 masks, although some agents had raised the price to HK$300.
Charles said most masks came from the mainland, with the exceptions being 3M’s N95 and some brands from Taiwan. However, Taiwan banned the export of masks on Thursday to ensure a stable supply locally.
“It is also uncertain if mainland-made masks can be shipped to Hong Kong, as there may be fears as to whether those masks were free of virus,” he said. “We can only see if the situation improves after the Lunar New Year.”


‘Don’t repeat the mistakes of Sars’, survivors’ group urges Hong Kong government as it wrestles with China coronavirus outbreak

A worker walks past a plaque at Kwong Wah Hospital commemorating Sars victims. Photo: SCMP Pictures

Nurse measuring the body temperture of the elderly during the drill. Department of Health, HA and Health and Food Bureau department conduct a drill to test responses arising from fictitious SARS case in an elderly home, Wong Tai Sin. 20 NOVEMBER 2003

Students of SKH Yat San Primary School line up to have temperature check for the SARS precaution on the first day of the new school year. 01 September 2003

News

Hong Kong

Health & Environment


Hong Kong Sars Mutual Help Association calls on government to be proactive, including banning non-locals who visited Wuhan within past month from entering city
The city’s fight against the new coronavirus has been an emotional reminder for many Sars survivors, group chairman says



Hong Kong Sars Mutual Help Association urges government to be proactive, including banning non-locals who visited Wuhan within the past month from entering city.


‘Don’t repeat the mistakes of Sars’, survivors’ group urges Hong Kong government as it wrestles with China coronavirus outbreak

Hong Kong Sars Mutual Help Association calls on government to be proactive, including banning non-locals who visited Wuhan within past month from entering city The city’s fight against the new coronavirus has been an emotional reminder for many Sars survivors, group chairman says

Hong Kong Sars Mutual Help Association calls on government to be proactive, including banning non-locals who visited Wuhan within past month from entering city

The city’s fight against the new coronavirus has been an emotional reminder for many Sars survivors, group chairman says