First case of SARS-like virus in Hong Kong – sources


First case of SARS-like virus in Hong Kong - sources

Hong Kong has recorded its first case of the new mysterious SARS-like coronavirus from China, according to sources.

A mainland passenger arrived on the G5607 Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link train in Hong Kong at 7:54pm on Tuesday with signs of a fever, a spokesperson for the MTR Corporation (MTRC) told HKFP. The man told Department of Health officials that he had been to Wuhan.

Queen Elizabeth Hospital

Queen Elizabeth Hospital. Photo: Wikimedia Commons.

The man was sent to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Yau Ma Tei for checkups. Preliminary tests came back positive for the virus, a source told HKFP.

Shortly before 6:30pm, the patient was transferred to Princess Margaret Hospital in Kwai Chung.

The MTRC said it had arranged for cleaners to disinfect parts of the West Kowloon terminus where the passenger had been. It added that since the train took the next round of passengers back to China before being notified about the case, the MTRC had instructed mainland authorities to clean the second cabin, where the infected passenger was.

Secretary for Food and Health Sophia Chan said on Wednesday that the Leisure and Cultural Services Department had prepared two camps in remotes parts of Hong Kong as potential quarantine sites.

Lady MacLehose Holiday Village

Lady MacLehose Holiday Village. Photo: GovHK.

A street market near the Chinese city of Wuhan has seen an outbreak of an atypical form of pneumonia, suspected to be linked to Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS). The SARS virus killed hundreds of Hongkongers in 2003.

Macau authorities also said the city recorded its first confirmed case of the virus on Wednesday.

Secretary for Health Chan, Hospital Authority chief Tony Ko and Director of Health Constance Chan are set to meet the press at 7.30pm.


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