Govt Admits That Book Fair Carries Health Risks

Health Secretary Sophia Chan admitted on Saturday that there are risks inherent in the planned book fair next week.

Some 200 exhibitors have urged the organisers to postpone the event, given a recent surge in local cases of Covid-19.

The concerns have intensified after health officials confirmed 32 new, locally-transmitted cases of Covid-19 in Hong Kong on Friday – including 11 people who live at the same public housing estate in Sha Tin, and nine cases spread across the territory whose source of infection remains a mystery.

At the same time, six more imported cases were confirmed, taking the overall Covid-19 tally in Hong Kong to 1,403.

However, speaking after taking part in a radio programme, Chan said organisers would take all necessary precautions if they decide to press ahead with holding the event as scheduled.

"If there are gatherings that need to be held, they must have infection control measures, and also the people flow must be very carefully orchestrated in order to lower the risk as far as possible," Chan said.

Chan said officials were assessing the outbreak on a daily basis.

The recent spike in local infections has set off alarm bells in the SAR, and raised questions over the book fair.

One of the government's own advisers on fighting the epidemic, David Hui from the Chinese University, says large-scale gatherings like the book fair would make it easier for the virus to spread and harder to trace who's affected.

Organisers of the book fair announced last month that they'll put in extra safety measures like asking visitors to cleanse their hands after they flick through books, require guests to wear face masks, and offer promotions for people who visit the fair at night as organisers try to keep guests spaced out.

The health minister also urged people to stay at home as much as possible, as she voiced concerns over a third wave of coronavirus infections in the city.

She said the government has been putting in efforts to trace the spread of the virus and expand testing. She also defended the government's recent tightening of its mandatory social distancing rules that include a limit of eight people per table at an eatery.