Hong Kong Clamps Down On COVID-19 Threat from Overseas

Hong Kong faced eight new COVID-19 cases Monday, all of them imported, as authorities look at increasing precautionary measures.

The infected travelers were returning to Hong Kong from seven countries on four different continents, including two people from Pakistan and one from Spain.

"Members of the public are strongly urged to avoid all nonessential travel outside Hong Kong," a CHP representative said Monday.

Upon arrival in Hong Kong, all travelers must undergo a 14-day quarantine in a hotel in case of potential infection and take a test for the virus. This is part of a citywide effort to curb transmission and includes limiting gathering sizes in public and wearing surgical masks.

"We have extensively tightened testing and quarantine requirements for inbound travelers and exempted persons since July," a representative of the Food and Health Bureau noted.

The rise in overseas cases comes days after authorities released a contact tracing mobile app called "Leave Home Safe" designed to store users' travel history and alert them to possible infection risks.

After downloading the app, users can scan the QR codes at locations throughout the city to see if the locale has been recently visited by someone returning from overseas. Use of the tool is voluntary and government officials were quick to expound on the strong privacy features within.

"There is no central system to record all the data and it will be erased automatically after 31 days," Alfred Sit, Secretary of Innovation and Technology, said Saturday after launching the app.

The latest cases bring the total number citywide to 5,458 - with 131 active cases - since the pandemic started in the early spring, with 108 deaths, as authorities look to avoid a fourth wave brought about by colder winter weather.