Hong Kong reports first COVID-19 death since September
Hong Kong has reported its first death of COVID-19 since September, as it tightens controls to curb the spread of a surge in Omicron cases.
According to the hospital authority statement, “The 73-year-old man, who was chronically ill, was admitted to hospital on Tuesday, where he was tested for the virus and preliminarily found to be positive.
“He required immediate resuscitation but died a few hours later.”
Under Hong Kong rules, further tests will be carried out before he is assessed COVID-19 positive, but if the virus is confirmed he will be the first known death from COVID-19 since September 13, bringing the death toll in the territory to 214.
Health authorities on Wednesday, reported a record 625 new cases. Some 2,628 cases have been reported over the past two weeks.
Hong Kong has again tightened measures aimed at controlling the spread of the virus as an outbreak of the Omicron variant proves a major test of the COVID-zero strategy it has followed since the pandemic began.
The hospital authority statement said, the elderly man who died was among four patients who tested preliminarily positive for the coronavirus on admission to the Caritas Medical Centre and that contact tracing had been carried out.
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Kamila/Al-Jazeera
