Officials Fear New Restaurant Outbreak Is Emerging

Hong Kong health officials are investigating another suspected Covid-19 outbreak at a restaurant, this time in Causeway Bay.

A fourth person who recently ate at Coast Seafood & Grill on Cleveland Street has been confirmed to have the virus.

One of the four patients had also visited Mr Ming's Chinese Dining in Tsim Sha Tsui, which has seen a major outbreak.

At the daily pandemic press briefing, officials said a 56-year-old man ate lunch at the Causeway Bay restaurant on February 22.

Three other confirmed coronavirus carriers were also there on the same day, including two who visited the restaurant at different times, but sat at the same table.

Officials said one of the patients in this suspected cluster had also been to Mr Ming's restaurant, just days earlier.

"The chance of random occurrence is a bit low. That's why...we advise them to do the testing," said Chuang Shuk-kwan from the Centre for Health Protection.

She said people who ate at the Cleveland Street restaurant should contact health authorities to arrange a Covid-19 test.

Around 20 environmental samples the centre took from the restaurant late on Monday all came back negative for the virus, but the premises has been asked to close nonetheless for thorough cleansing, Chuang said.

This came as Hong Kong reported a total of 21 new coronavirus cases on Tuesday, eight of them locally acquired and three of these untraceable.

One of the patients whose source of infection is unknown is a man who works in the Civil Engineering and Development Department's laboratory in Tai Po. Around a dozen staff there are being put in quarantine.

The 13 people deemed to have brought the virus into the territory with them flew in from Pakistan, the Philippines, Singapore, Canada and Nigeria.

Health officials said there were fewer than 10 new preliminary positive cases recorded on Tuesday.

One of them involves a 26-year-old man who works at a care home for mentally disabled people in Kwun Tong.

Around 70 residents and staff at the home have been sent to quarantine as a precaution.