Mandatory Covid Tests Ordered For Tai Po Residents

The government on Wednesday ordered residents in an extensive area in Tai Po to get tested for Covid-19, saying a very high viral load was detected in sewage samples collected there.

Sources also told RTHK that a Tai Po resident had tested preliminary positive for the coronavirus, and further tests are underway to find out if the person is infected with a mutant strain.

The compulsory testing order covers more than 30 buildings at residential estates including Classical Gardens and the Balmoral, King Nga Court and Yat Nga Court, some village houses, as well as a primary school.

Anyone who’s been in the area for more than two hours in the past two weeks is required to get tested by Friday.

However, people who are fully vaccinated are exempted from the testing order.

The Centre for Health Protection said its epidemiological investigations are ongoing.

Specialist in respiratory medicine Leung Chi-chiu said the situation could spin out of control if the patient carries the highly transmissible Delta variant of coronavirus, adding authorities should impose lockdowns in time to rein in the spread of the virus.

He said other Tai Po residents might have been infected already and may be carrying the virus across Hong Kong, paving the way for another massive outbreak of Covid-19.

“It will be too late if we only find these cases after another two to three days because it can spread well outside Tai Po,” he said.

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