Pressure On Hospitals As Covid Tally Tops 4,000 Again

Health authorities on Saturday said they were worried that the gradual increase in Covid cases was putting hospitals under pressure, as Hong Kong's daily coronavirus tally topped the 4,000-mark for the third consecutive day.

There were 4,034 local infections and 231 imported cases.

The Hospital Authority (HA) said a further 168 people with the virus had been admitted to hospital. In total, 1,275 patients were receiving care as of Saturday, compared to 1,257 on Friday. Five patients were in intensive care, up from two on Friday.

Chuang Shuk-kwan from the Centre for Health Protection said the number of cases had been rising at a steady pace, and voiced concerns over the possible burden on hospitals.

"We have seen the case number doubled in just a matter of weeks, so we are concerned about the caseload of HA and the pressure arising from this," Chuang said.

"We advise all people to be vaccinated. If you haven't gotten three jabs, please do so as soon as possible."

Seven more people with Covid died, including a 94-year-old, double-jabbed patient who passed away at home.

Health officials said the patient suffered dementia and asthma, and had tested positive earlier this month through a rapid antigen test a day after some family members contracted the virus.