City
Epaper

HK confirms 6th coronavirus case

By IANS | Updated: January 26, 2020 13:55 IST

Hong Kong has confirmed a sixth case of the novel coronavirus, sources said on Sunday, as more pressure piled on the city's government to tighten or even close its border with mainland China.

Open in App

The latest case came a day after Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam declared the outbreak an emergency and rolled out a series of measures to prevent further infection, reports the South China Morning Post newspaper.

The patient, in Ruttonjee Hospital, was diagnosed as having the virus on Sunday, and would be transferred to Princess Margaret Hospital, the sources said, adding that he was set to undergo further tests.

The Hong Kong resident with fever symptoms had been to Wuhan, the Chinese city at the epicentre of the outbreak, and returned home via high-speed rail.

It is not immediately known when he returned from China but a medical source said he had gone to Ruttonjee Hospital after being bitten by a dog.

The patient is the second resident of Hong Kong confirmed as having the infection, out of a total of six cases detected in the city so far.

Secretary for Food and Health Professor Sophia Chan said on Sunday that the government was looking at whether to increase border controls, including shortening operating hours at checkpoints, the South China Morning Post reported.

Meanwhile, Macau confirmed three new cases of the Wuhan virus on Sunday, raising its total to five.

Officials from Macau said one of those infected was a 58-year-old Wuhan resident, who arrived in the casino hub via Hong Kong on a ferry.

The disease has already spread to a dozen other countries with Canada confirming its first case on Saturday after a patient in Ontario tested positive. The man is said to have travelled from China recently.

Besides Canada, the cases reported outside China were five each in Thailand; four in Australia; three each in South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia, Nepal and France; two each in Japan, the US and Vietnam.

The death toll due to the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) outbreak in China has increased to 56, while the number of infected persons were 1,975, the country's National Health Commission said on Sunday.

Chinese President Xi Jinping has warned that the spread of the deadly illness was accelerating.

( With inputs from IANS )

Tags: chinaHong KongRuttonjee HospitalWuhan
Open in App

Related Stories

International'Illegal Military Operations': China Accuses US and Israel of Strait of Hormuz Crisis

NationalDelhi Government Orders Removal of 2.5 Lakh Chinese CCTV Cameras Over Security Concerns

InternationalChina: Four Dead, Nine Injured After Explosion at Highway Tunnel Construction Site in Chongqing

InternationalChina: Casualties Feared After Bulldozer Runs Over Crowd in Beijing Market (Watch Video)

MumbaiMumbai: DRI Seizes Restricted Goods Worth ₹9.25 Crore; Two Firm Owners Arrested

International Realted Stories

International"Aggressors will see our might": Iranian FM's warning after US-Israeli strike on Sharif University in Tehran

InternationalIAEA says US-Israeli strike landed 75 metres from Iran's Bushehr plant; nuclear facility not damaged

InternationalPakistan lacks coherent plan to combat HIV as cases continue to rise: Report

InternationalIsrael will continue with full force on all fronts until threat is removed: Netanyahu

InternationalIsrael attacks Iran's petrochemical industry facilities in Pars Special Zone; no casualties reported