The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health (DH) announced that as of 0.00am, December 5, the CHP was investigating nine additional confirmed cases of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), taking the number of cases to 12 462 in Hong Kong so far (comprising 12 461 confirmed cases and one probable case).
The newly reported cases are imported cases which involved mutant strains. The patients comprise nine males, aged 25 to 62. Three of them arrived in Hong Kong from Group A specified places (high-risk), among which one tested positive during the "test-and-hold" arrangement upon arrival at the Temporary Specimen Collection Centre at Hong Kong International Airport and the other two tested positive during quarantine. The remaining six cases are sea crew members (case 12459 to 12464). They arrived in Hong Kong from Japan via the cargo vessel Glory Sky on December 1. There was a confirmed case involving a sea crew member of that vessel (case 12453). The CHP collected specimens of the other sea crew members undergoing quarantine on the vessel on December 3 and the six patients tested positive. The remaining sea crew members of the cargo vessel have to undergo quarantine on board the vessel and conduct tests in accordance with the current arrangement during the quarantine period.
A total of 53 cases have been reported in the past 14 days (November 21 to December 4) and all of them are imported cases.
The CHP's epidemiological investigations and relevant contact tracing on the confirmed cases are ongoing. For case details and contact tracing information, please see the Annex or the "COVID-19 Thematic Website" (www.coronavirus.gov.hk).
​The spokesman for the CHP stressed, "The global situation of COVID-19 infection remains severe and there is a continuous increase in the number of cases involving mutant strains that carry higher transmissibility, and there are also reports of breakthrough infections in some vaccinated individuals. The CHP strongly urges members of the public to avoid all non-essential travel outside Hong Kong, in particular to specified places with high risk under the Prevention and Control of Disease (Regulation of Cross-boundary Conveyances and Travellers) Regulation (Cap. 599H)."
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