Plastic barriers in restaurants may affect air circulation: Gabriel Leung

Health expert Gabriel Leung said studies showed the Omicron variant is transmitted airborne and plastic barriers on tables in restaurants that are meant to reduce infection risk may affect air circulation.  

Speaking on a radio program on Saturday, Leung, the Dean of the Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine at the University of Hong Kong, said putting up these plastic barriers at restaurants is “a make-believe more than anything else.”  

He referred to studies and said the Omicron variant is spread through the air but not through respiratory droplets. He continued that setting these plastic barriers at the tables would restrict the airflow, and fresh air would hardly exchange.  

Leung then suggested the 1.5-meter social distancing measure as an alternative, allowing the air to exchange more frequently when the tables at the restaurant are placed further away.  

He also spoke of the extended anti-pandemic measures, including banning restaurants from providing dine-in service after 6pm every night.  

He said it is risky to relax social distancing measures, and he understood that these measures cannot be in place forever. He suggested the government allow restaurants to reopen for a short while during the dinner period, like running until 8pm or 8.30pm, for the sake of businesses and citizens.  

Yet, the reopening should only be allowed given that the industry and citizens all comply with the anti-pandemic measures.