Sixteen people protest at Penny's Bay with no end to isolation in sight

Sixteen people isolated at the Penny's Bay quarantine center left their rooms in protest on Thursday, dissatisfied with not knowing when they could leave the camp.  

They left their rooms collectively at about 1 pm. The staffers called the police after failing to persuade them to go back.  

Police arrived and found the 16 to be gathering at an open area at the camp. They appeared to be calm.  

Hospital Authority representatives later registered their information and said they would follow up on their cases.  

The protest aside, a Facebook post on Thursday showed a distressed man at the Penny's Bay center throwing things around and threatening to drink disinfectant water.  

The man in a gray sweatshirt, suspected to be overwhelmed with pressure, sat outside quarantine rooms holding a suspected disinfectant and a cell phone. Pillows were seen scattered all around him.  

He was not the only person to have suffered inside the camp.  

On Wednesday, another man threw his pillow and other stuff out of the window and went out of his room to sleep in the corridor. He was finally persuaded to return to his room after four hours.  

The man said his sleeping outside was a protest. He needs drugs for chronic diseases but received no support in the 10 days inside the camp.  

At the same time, the lousy food there made him suffer from constant diarrhea; he said: "It (Isolation here) is like a concentration camp. No one would know if I died."  

Earlier, two clips uploaded online on Wednesday showed a woman isolated at the center running out of her room, punching, and kicking a staffer for not being able to leave.  

At least three other patients have attempted suicide while undergoing mandatory quarantine at Penny's Bay.  

The 3,500-unit Penny's Bay Quarantine Centre is currently serving as a community isolation facility to quarantine Covid-19 patients who remain asymptomatic.  

Patients who are relatively young, asymptomatic, or mildly symptomatic, and without any significant medical background will be sent there to isolate until the virus in the body drops to a safe level. Authorities said it typically takes five to 10 days for such patients to be discharged.  

Tung Wah Group of Hospitals and Yan Chai Hospital offer free emotional support hotlines for those quarantined at Penny's Bay.  

The hotlines are staffed by professional social workers to support the affected to release their stress under quarantine through sharing and counseling.  

TWGHs CEASE Crisis Centre Hotline: 18281  

(Service hours: 24-hour service from January 18 to February 14, 2022)

YCH Hotline: 5484 1081   

(Service hours: 9 am to 6 pm from Monday to Friday (except public holidays) from January 18 to February 14, 2022)  

If you, or someone you know, are having suicidal thoughts, help is available. Dial 2896 0000 for The Samaritans or 2382 2007 for Suicide Prevention Services.