Kwok Ka-ki calls for setting up of quarantine areas at airport, rail station

Civic Party lawmaker Kwok Ka-ki has called on the government to set up quarantine areas at the airport and high-speed rail station, saying the Wuhan virus will spread to Hong Kong sooner or later as neighboring Shenzhen has its first confirmed case, RTHK reports.

Kwok, who's also a medical doctor, said the government is doing far from enough especially when the Lunar New Year, a peak travel season, is coming.

He said during the holidays starting this weekend, more than a million people are expected to travel to and from the mainland to the city.

"This will be the highest risk to Hong Kong. I would urge the government to introduce health declaration forms as soon as possible and to elevate our preparations to acute or emergency status," he said.

The lawmaker said raising the alert level would enable the government to form a commission headed by the chief secretary to tackle an outbreak.

Kwok said if a visitor arriving in Hong Kong is suspected of the disease, the current practice is to call an ambulance and send the suspected patient to a hospital.

But as accident and emergency units are already packed with seasonal flu patients and the new year period will be the peak of the season, there will be a high risk of human to human transmission of the virus, he said. Photo: RTHK.