World

COVID-19 at record level in Hong Kong

By AAP Newswire

Feb 9, 2022

Virus Outbreak Hong Kong — More than 600 daily COVID-19 cases have been reported in Hong Kong, another record. -AP

Despite a zero-COVID policy, cases of the coronavirus have reached a record level in Hong Kong, with 625 reported in the space of a day.

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It was the third consecutive day that the authorities have reported a record number of infections, they said on Tuesday.

Hong Kong, a city of seven million people, recorded almost no cases for some time but the figures began to rise again at the end of December when two flight attendants who broke health rules introduced the virus again.

Case numbers has risen rapidly in recent days after the health authorities were unable to track the spread of the infections.

Despite the rapidly rise in numbers, Chief Executive Carrie Lam reiterated on Tuesday that she intends to stick to the "dynamic zero infection strategy".

The government had hoped to reinstate quarantine-free travel from Hong Kong to mainland China, which is also pursuing a strict zero-COVID policy.

However the latest outbreak means the border is likely to remain closed for the time being.

Several major Chinese cities have also recently reported cases of the more-transmissible Omicron strain of the virus, although infections have not spread exponentially, unlike in Hong Kong.

Nationwide, China reported 65 localÂ infections on Tuesday.