国内英语资讯:Hong Kong stressed out as COVID-19 cases exceeds 3,000_时事

国内英语资讯:Hong Kong stressed out as COVID-19 cases exceeds 3,000

Since the recurrence of local infections on July 5, Hong Kong has seen a surge in the number of COVID-19 cases. It took nearly three months for the total number of confirmed cases in Hong Kong to go from zero to 1,000, another three months for the number to exceed 2,000, but only less than two weeks for it to reach 3,000.

The HKSAR government has introduced several rounds of stringent measures over the past weeks to curb the resurgence of COVID-19 infections.

Starting from Wednesday, dining-in services in restaurants have been prohibited and mask-wearing compulsory in all public places, both indoors and outdoors. The group gathering limit has also been lowered from four to two people.

The HKSAR government also tightened the testing and quarantine arrangement for exempted persons such as sea and air crew members starting from Wednesday, as an effort to strengthen the prevention of imported cases under the current severe epidemic situation.

The rapid increase in COVID-19 cases has put Hong Kong's hospital system under great strain, resulting in some confirmed patients being unable to be admitted to hospital for isolation treatment in time.

Sara Ho, a chief manager of Hong Kong's Hospital Authority, said at Wednesday's briefing that the occupancy rates of negative pressure rooms and isolation beds in public hospitals have risen to 80 percent and 78.4 percent respectively.

Health experts and various groups in Hong Kong have called for expanding Hong Kong's COVID-19 virus testing capability and isolation and treatment capacity. There are also calls for seeking help from the central government and drawing on the mainland's successful experience of fighting COVID-19.