The Centre for Food Safety (CFS) of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department announced today (August 4) that in view of a notification from the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) about an outbreak of highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza in Magadan Oblast in Russia, the CFS has instructed the trade to suspend the import of poultry meat and products (including poultry eggs) from the above-mentioned area with immediate effect to protect public health in Hong Kong.

     A CFS spokesman said that Hong Kong has currently established a protocol with Russia for the import of poultry meat but not for poultry eggs. According to the Census and Statistics Department, Hong Kong imported about 80 tonnes of frozen poultry meat from Russia in the first six months of this year.

     "The CFS has contacted the Russian authorities over the issues and will closely monitor information issued by the OIE and the relevant authorities on the avian influenza outbreak. Appropriate action will be taken in response to the development of the situation," the spokesman said.

     Children aged from 6 months to 3 years may receive the Sinovac vaccine starting from today (August 4). The Secretary for the Civil Service, Mrs Ingrid Yeung, visited a kindergarten-cum-child care centre in To Kwa Wan today to view the vaccination of children and appealed to parents to arrange COVID-19 vaccination for their children as soon as possible.
 
     The kindergarten-cum-child care centre is the first premises having children vaccinated through outreach service after the lowering of the minimum age for receiving the Sinovac vaccine to 6 months old.
 
     She then visited a Community Vaccination Centre (CVC) in Kwun Tong, where about 15 children aged under 3 years old received COVID-19 vaccination.

     Mrs Yeung said that the Government will continue to increase the number of vaccination venues to facilitate the early vaccination of the public. Maternal and Child Health Centres under the Department of Health are also preparing to provide the Sinovac vaccination service to children aged from 6 months to 3 years when they receive regular services with bookings, e.g. the Hong Kong Childhood Immunisation Programme, from mid-August.
 
     She added that, in order to let children receive vaccination in a more relaxing environment, five CVCs providing the Sinovac vaccine have retrofitted some vaccination booths specifically for children and decorated them with stickers of animal cartoons. Breastfeeding areas and areas for changing diapers have also been set up for use by parents in need.
 
     Parents or guardians can also make appointments for their children to receive the Sinovac vaccine at CVCs or designated general out-patient clinics of the Hospital Authority through the online booking system (booking.covidvaccine.gov.hk). Parents can also opt for making reservation for free Sinovac vaccination through more than 1 000 private doctors or clinics that participate in the COVID-19 Vaccination Programme.
 
     Parents are required to present the original copy of their children's birth certificate and bring along a consent form signed by the parents on the date of vaccination of the children. The consent form can be downloaded from the designated website of the Vaccination Programme (www.covidvaccine.gov.hk/pdf/Consent_Form_for_COVID19_Vaccination_ENG.pdf). The children must be accompanied by their parents/guardians in person when receiving vaccination.
 
     The designated website for the COVID-19 Vaccination Programme (www.covidvaccine.gov.hk/en/programme) provides the latest information including details on vaccination venues, reservation and enquiry hotlines.

                  

     The Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau (FSTB) today (August 4) said that the Political Assistant to the Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, Mr Julian Ip, has tested preliminarily positive for COVID-19.
 
     Mr Ip last went to work on August 2. He wore masks and followed relevant disease prevention measures at work. He has no recent travel history.
 
     The Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, Mr Christopher Hui, and the Under Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, Mr Joseph Chan, have been taking COVID-19 rapid tests every day and the results are all negative.
 
     The FSTB has conducted thorough cleaning and disinfection at the relevant offices and arranged for relevant staff members to undergo COVID-19 tests in accordance with the advice from the Centre for Health Protection of the Department of Health.

     The Government announced today (August 4) that in order to fight the coronavirus epidemic, the Environmental Protection Department and the Drainage Services Department have been collecting sewage samples for virus testing in all districts, and had detected positive results in some areas, indicating that there may be hidden cases in the premises within these areas.
 
Rapid test
 
     As regards positive sewage testing results with relatively high viral loads in the following areas, the Housing Department and the respective District Offices will commence distributing about 110 000 sets of the COVID-19 rapid antigen test (RAT) kits to residents, cleaning workers and property management staff working in the following areas for them to take the test on their own, in order to help identify infected persons:
                                  

• Central and Western District – Queen's Terrace, and residential premises around Queen's Road West, New Street and Chuk Lin Lane (see Annex)
• Kowloon City District – Oi Man Estate, Chun Man Court, Dragon View, Parc Regal, Lok Man Sun Chuen, and residential premises around Kiang Hsi Street and Anhui Street (see Annex)

 
     Members of the public may refer to (www.coronavirus.gov.hk/rat/eng/rat.html) for enquiries relating to the use of the RAT kits.
 
     When using an RAT kit, please pay attention to and follow the instructions from the manufacturer to perform the test and read the result properly. It is advisable to record the displayed result by taking a photo immediately after reading. Users should wash their hands before and after performing the tests, and avoid placing non-essential items within the specimen collection area. After completing the test, wrap and seal all components of the test kit carefully and dispose of them properly. If the household environment is contaminated during the specimen collecting process, disinfection should be conducted with 1 in 49 diluted bleach solution or 70 per cent alcohol.
 
     People who obtained a positive result through an RAT for the first time can report via the online platform "Declaration System for individuals tested positive for COVID-19 using Rapid Antigen Test" (www.chp.gov.hk/ratp). If individuals encounter difficulties using the online platform, they can call the automated system at 183 6119 to register their identification document and telephone number. The Centre for Health Protection of the Department of Health will contact the relevant person later to finish the report procedure.

Attention TV/radio announcers:
 
Please broadcast the following as soon as possible:
 
     As the Hong Kong Observatory has cancelled all typhoon warning signals, the Civil Engineering and Development Department today (August 4) announced that the Chai Wan Public Fill Barging Point will be reopened at 4.30pm for public use.