Abbatoir hit by cluster as case numbers stay high

Three workers at Sheung Shui Slaughterhouse tested positive for Covid-19, but operations will continue as normal as the abattoir has stepped up daily cleaning, undersecretary for food and health Chui Tak-yi said.

This came as Hong Kong yesterday saw 128 new patients, including 25 imported cases, 68 linked to previous local cases and 35 from unknown local sources, in addition to around 100 preliminary positive cases expected to be confirmed today.

It was the fifth consecutive day of over 100 reported cases, taking the tally to 2,634, including 18 deaths.

Chui said overseas studies and World Health Organization guidelines showed the risk of contracting coronavirus through food is low, but he reminded residents to make sure meat is well cooked.

"Two of the infected were responsible for sending pigs to slaughter and the third is a meat buyer. None of them works in the slaughter chain," he said, adding that one of them could be linked to a previous case as they live in the same building.

Chui said the abattoir has been clearing pigs daily and disinfecting every night since the outbreak of swine fever last year.

"After the first worker tested positive, we advised them to step up cleaning, especially facilities shared by workers," he said.

That came as more care homes have seen staffers and residents infected yesterday, with Cornwall Elderly's Home (Golden Branch) in Tuen Mun seeing one more worker and seven residents diagnosed and 13 other residents testing preliminarily positive.

The head of the Centre for Health Protection's communicable disease branch Chuang Shuk-kwan said so far, 22 people - 19 residents and three workers - at the elderly center have been infected and the whole institution has to be evacuated, as staffers worked multiple floors.

King Fuk Home for the Aged in Sham Shui Po's Un Chau Street also saw a resident infected, and 25 residents and workers on the same floor will be moved to a quarantine center. Chuang said the caregivers and residents on different floors never came into contact, and only those on the second floor will be evacuated, as the elderly home is not suitable for quarantine purposes.

She said SAHK Jockey Clun Bradbury Wah Sum Care Centre - a rehabilitation center for the handicapped - in Fan Ling also saw a caregiver infected.

Over 50 residents will be tested before authorities decide on an evacuation.

Asked what the source of infection in care homes could be, she said: "If the residents can leave freely, they could have contracted the virus and brought it back."

"Staffers could also have brought back the virus after being in contact with infected friends or families," she said.

Chuang said of 68 cases linked to previous patients, 47 were friends and families of diagnosed patients or have dined together and 11 were workplace clusters.

She said two were taxi drivers, one of whom was detected by the extended government laboratory surveillance system. The other taxi driver went to a private clinic after feeling unwell.

One of yesterday's preliminary positive cases was a station officer at Tsing Yi South fire station, who had joined an inspection operation of home-quarantine returnees last Monday.

The fire station previously saw three workers infected, and over 20 workers will be sent to quarantine.

A secondary four student at Cheung Sha Wan Catholic Secondary School also tested positive.

The school told parents the student last went to school on July 15 to submit fees and check his examination papers.

The school has suspended all campus activities from Friday to next Monday and will move its summer bridging courses online.

A contract worker for the airport's arrival baggage delivery was infected, leading the Airport Authority to sterilize the area and arrange virus tests.