Food Panda Worker Among New Virus Victims

Health officials played down concerns about coronavirus spreading to customers after a food delivery worker who works in Tseung Kwan O was listed as among 13 coronavirus cases that were reported in Hong Kong on Friday.

Ten of the cases were local transmissions, while the rest of the patients arrived in Hong Kong from Bahrain, India and Pakistan.

The Centre for Health Protection's Chuang Shuk-kwan said the 54-year-old delivery staff works for Food Panda and wore face masks during delivery, and therefore customers who had used the service shouldn't be too worried.

“The food delivery is very short and they’re usually packaged and she was wearing masks during those deliveries. So we don't consider those customers as close contacts”, she said.

Chuang added that the 54-year-old’s husband and two children were also infected.

Meanwhile, health officials are tracing patients who visited a private doctor's clinic in Yuen Long after a nurse there tested preliminary positive for the virus.

Staff at Dr Dick Tse’s clinic have all now been sent to quarantine.