Avoid Usual Weekend Gatherings At Home, Say Experts

Health officials appealed to the public to refrain from gathering at homes during weekends, warning that nearly half of the 125 new coronavirus cases reported on Saturday were linked to such events.

“We observed that there are quite a number of household clusters ... many of them get the whole family get infected,” said Centre for Health Protection’s Chuang Shuk-kwan.

“We do not have, any of us, do not have any immunity, that’s why once introduced into the family, the whole family may get infected,” she said.

Chuang said they have seen “some extended family clusters” with children, grandparents and relatives falling ill because they were having gatherings during weekends as usual.

“I think we may have to stop this practice for one or two weeks to maintain the social distancing because once any one of them get infected, it is very likely … other members of the family will get infected,” the communicable disease expert said.

“So try to avoid gathering with the elderly as far as possible,” she appealed to the public.

Authorities also confirmed that about two dozen patients with mild symptoms of the coronavirus have been moved to the newly opened facility at the AsiaWorld Expo centre.

Officials have said that over a hundred people are still waiting for hospitalisation. Asked about the small number though the facility at AsiaWorld Expo has much more number of beds, the officials said they want to proceed at a controlled pace to sort out the teething problems, if any, at the centre.