Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam has said the government will ban dine-in services at restaurants again, as the city seeks to tighten social distancing measures in a bid to curb the latest wave of the Covid-19 outbreak.
Speaking to reporters before Tuesday’s Executive Council meeting, Lam announced the government will roll out more stringent social distancing measures to contain the spread of the coronavirus in Hong Kong.
Citizens will not be allowed to dine-in at restaurants after 6 pm, while gyms, beauty parlours and massage parlours will also shut down. The government will reduce the number of civil servants coming in to their offices, as Lam urged private companies to let their employees work remotely.
The city’s leader said the current surge in coronavirus cases was “more complicated” than the previous wave of infections in July. She cited Octopus data as showing more people were on the street amid the outbreak, despite anti-epidemic measures being in place.
“The new wave of outbreak has scattered throughout the 18 districts… it also involves many clusters,” Lam said.
She also pointed to the rise in the number of untraceable infections and more younger patients in a serious condition: “We have to exercise extra caution, do not be careless.”
On Monday, Hong Kong recorded 78 new Covid-19 cases, pushing the infection toll to 6,975. Over 1,160 locally transmitted infections were recorded over the past two weeks, of which 282 were from unknown sources. So far, 112 coronavirus patients in Hong Kong have passed away.
Lam said relevant government secretaries will unveil the details of their newest anti-epidemic measures later on Tuesday.
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