(Video) Distressed woman punches Penny's Bay staffer

A woman isolated at Penny's Bay Quarantine Centre ran out of her room and punched and kicked a staffer for not being able to leave, according to videos going viral online. 

The first clip shows the woman, who was not wearing a mask at the time, leaving her room and running down the corridor.   

"Don't pretend to care about me! I want to go back! I have recovered! I'm crazy!" She shouted, continuing her tirade of yelling and cursing.

The staff attempted to calm her down and offered help, saying: "Don't be mad! Calm down first!" But the woman refused to listen and went on to lambast them for annoying her further.  

In another clip, the woman was seen screaming and crying outside, after which she chased down a security guard and attacked him, injuring his knee.  

The police said they received a report at 6.22 pm on Tuesday that a woman attacked a male security guard with her hands at the Penny's Bay quarantine center and that she did not wear a mask and tried to escape from the center. They listed the case as assault occasioning actual bodily harm, but no arrest has yet been made.  

The patient's emotional breakdown was not an isolated incident, however, as at least three other patients have attempted suicide in the last 27 hours while undergoing mandatory quarantine at Penny's Bay.

Earlier on Monday afternoon, a 59-year-old woman tried to jump from a building after she was said to have been dissatisfied with the meal arrangements. She was eventually talked down by the police and firefighters and returned to safety.   

On Tuesday, another man and woman also called the police from the center, saying they wanted to commit suicide.  

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 manned 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.