Officials Rush To Stop Kwai Tsing Terminal Outbreak

Authorities are rushing to contain a Covid-19 outbreak at Kwai Tsing Container Terminal to avoid a shutdown of the facility, which an official said handles most of the imports into the city.

Health officials revealed on Sunday that a coronavirus outbreak at the terminal has rapidly expanded, with 34 more people who work there catching the infection.

Health officials are rushing to test as many as 8,000 people who work at the terminal as the latest cases take the total number of infections linked to the site to 63, involving workers from more than 10 companies.

Of the latest cases, 33 out of 34 of them work for the same company, Wang Kee Port Operation Services.

Dr Chuang Shuk-kwan of the Centre for Health Protection said she believed the virus was transmitted at a common area at the terminal where the workers eat, shower and rest.

“They have a resting room with some beds, toilets, tables and showers. The workers would share those facilities. Sometimes they sleep there to rest overnight so it’s just like a hostel or a big family. If you share items, stay together, live together, the chance of transmission is very high,” she said.

Chuang said as the workers had to handle the containers and get on board ships sometimes, there are chances they might come into contact with ship crew also. But she said officials are still investigating the outbreak source.

She said it is a big deal if the terminal had to be shut down as it handled most of Hong Kong’s imported goods.

She said, therefore, authorities are trying to contain the outbreak by giving out bottles to collect samples from 8,000 people who work at the terminal for Covid-19 tests.

The centre confirmed a total of 74 new coronavirus cases on Sunday, all but four are locally acquired infections.

Preliminary results show 20 other people have also tested positive for the virus.

Hong Kong has so far reported 4,480 coronavirus infections, with 69 fatalities.