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https://scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3123393/coronavirus-pfizer-biontech-vaccine-arrives-hong
Hong Kong/ Health & Environment

Coronavirus: 585,000 BioNTech vaccines land in Hong Kong with strict measures in place for safe delivery to the public

  • The shots are packed in boxes fitted with tracking devices and thermometers to guarantee safe and secure delivery to vaccination centres
  • They offer an alternative to the mainland-produced Sinovac jab, with vaccinations for priority groups now in full swing
Hundreds of thousands of BioNTech’s Covid-19 vaccine shots are now in Hong Kong. Photo: Felix Wong

The 585,000 doses of Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccines that landed in Hong Kong on Saturday were packaged on arrival in boxes equipped with temperature-monitoring and location-tracking devices, as part of the strict logistical arrangements in place to guarantee their safe delivery to the public.

Their arrival came as a 72-year-old man experienced dizziness and faster heart beats after being inoculated with the Sinovac vaccine on Saturday, the first reported incident since the mass-vaccination programme started on Thursday.

Virtus Medical, which runs community vaccination at Kwun Chung Sports Centre, confirmed the man developed the symptoms during the 30-minute observation period after receiving a jab there on Saturday morning.

The man, who was previously known to have hypertension, was sent to Queen Elizabeth Hospital for treatment, and a hospital spokesman said the patient was stable as of 10pm on Saturday.

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Virtus Medical said it had reported the case to the Department of Health, and there was no evidence the man’s condition was related to the vaccine.

The first BioNTech vaccines arrived in the city a few hours before health officials confirmed another 33 coronavirus cases, amid fears of a “super-spreading” event at a restaurant in an upscale Tsim Sha Tsui shopping centre.

Cathay Pacific Airways flight CX2066 carrying the first of the initial two batches of the US-German vaccine from Frankfurt landed at Hong Kong International Airport at 10.26am.

Civil service chief Patrick Nip Tak-kuen and health secretary Sophia Chan Siu-chee – as well as Cathay Pacific CEO Augustus Tang Kin-wing and the airline’s director of cargo Tom Owen – were among those greeting the plane’s arrival.

The doses, which must be kept at -70 degrees Celsius (-94 degrees Fahrenheit), were transported in boxes filled with dry ice, and were moved to the central distribution centre in a Kwai Chung warehouse.

The supply will provide the city’s 2.4 million essential frontline workers and at-risk residents – who have priority in the inoculation drive that launched this week – an alternative to the Sinovac jab. Some of the latest doses to arrive were expected to be sent to Macau.

Hongkongers in five groups will be given vaccination priority: health workers and others fighting the pandemic; those aged 60 and above; residents and staff of elderly and disability care homes; those providing essential public services such as disciplined forces, postal staff and hygiene workers; and cross-border transport workers including truck drivers, air and sea crew, and fishermen.

Saturday’s consignment contained 585,000 shots, with another batch set to arrive in the coming week to fulfil the initial order of 1 million. The remaining doses would arrive in early March, the government said in a statement.

Public relations teams for the companies involved in the supply and distribution of the vaccines for Hong Kong staged a press conference showcasing the design of the boxes.

In each box, there are five compartments holding 195 vials apiece. The contents of each vial can be diluted into five vaccine doses, meaning each box contains 4,875 shots.

Hongkongers can start booking appointments for the newly arrived BioNTech vaccine from Monday. Photo: Felix Wong
Hongkongers can start booking appointments for the newly arrived BioNTech vaccine from Monday. Photo: Felix Wong

No representatives for Fosun, BioNTech’s partner supplying the vaccines to Hong Kong, or DCH Auriga, which manages the storage and distribution, made any comment at the press event and no questions were taken after they posed for photographs with the boxes.

The Macau government also announced on Saturday that more than 100,000 doses of BioNTech vaccines arrived in the city in the afternoon and members of the public would be getting the jabs from next Wednesday.

About 13,000 people were inoculated with the mainland jab on Friday and Saturday at five venues and 18 public outpatient clinics, the first two days of the mass-vaccination programme.

They were among the 70,000 people who have registered for the vaccine over the next two weeks.

Another 200,000 places for the mainland-produced vaccines will be available for online booking from next Monday, when private clinics are expected to begin receiving the jabs.

Given the demand, the government announced the Sinovac jabs would be delivered at three of the 24 centres slated for the BioNTech vaccine.

The venues in Tseung Kwan O, Kwai Tsing and Tuen Mun are expected to offer Sinovac vaccines from March 6.

Registration details for the BioNTech vaccine have not been announced.

Referring to the vaccine by its brand name, the government said: “In response to the arrival of the Comirnaty vaccine in Hong Kong, we will open the online appointment system next week to allow the public to make appointments ... The specific arrangements will be announced in due course.”

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Initially, only seven of the 24 community vaccination centres administering the BioNTech doses will open, to help ensure that handling procedures are followed, such as the defrosting process. The rest of the facilities will open gradually.

The seven centres opening first are: Sun Yat Sen Memorial Park Sports Centre in Sheung Wan; Sai Wan Ho Sports Centre; Hiu Kwong Street Sports Centre in Kwun Tong; the Education Bureau Kowloon Tong Education Services Centre; Lai Chi Kok Park Sports Centre; Lung Sum Avenue Sports Centre in Sheung Shui; and Yuen Long Sports Centre.

The city has struck deals to buy 22.5 million doses of vaccines, with 7.5 million shots each coming from three suppliers: Sinovac Biotech; British-Swedish firm AstraZeneca; and Fosun Pharma, which is delivering the jab jointly developed by Germany’s BioNTech and US-based Pfizer.

The jabs from BioNTech are a type of messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccine that trains the immune system to recognise the spike protein the coronavirus uses to invade human cells.

Unlike traditional vaccines, mRNA shots contain no actual part of the virus. Instead, scientists use synthetic genes to create the virus’ distinctive spike protein, preparing the immune system for an attack should the real pathogen enter the body.

Beijing-based Sinovac Biotech developed CoronaVac, an inactivated vaccine that uses a dead virus to help the body develop an immune response.

Additional reporting by Lilian Cheng