Two local residents were admitted to the Coloane Alto quarantine facility on Tuesday, Macau health authorities reported during yesterday’s daily press conference. The residents are husband and wife and because the wife recently returned to Macau from Spain, the couple were admitted to quarantine as a precautionary measure (inside story on p4).
Meanwhile, two other Macau residents, a 64-year-old man and a 60-year-old female, were reported to have traveled in Egypt between February 27 to March 7, and have also been put into quarantine at the Coloane Alto facility.
A group of Hong Kong residents recently tested positive for the infection after their trip in the Middle Eastern country. The Macau locals flew on the same outbound and inbound flights as the tour group from Hong Kong. On the inbound flight, the Macau locals were seated three rows behind the Hong Kong tourists.
The Macau Health Bureau has categorized them as close contact cases and placed them into quarantine at Coloane Alto.
The Macau residents have both developed mild fever and respiratory symptoms. The man has been tested twice with negative results from both tests. He tested positive, however, for other respiratory viruses. The woman has been tested once and also obtained a negative result.
The four residents were placed under quarantine as part of precautionary measures adopted by the Macau government, as it works to safeguard its recent success in eradicating the Covid-19 coronavirus from Macau. Yesterday was the sixth day without any cases of the virus confirmed in Macau.
Other countries and territories have not been as successful at managing the Covid-19 outbreak. In many places, the number of cases continues to rise on a daily basis.
In response to this situation, the Tourism Crisis Management Office (GGCT) has issued a Level 2 Travel Alert for Germany, France, Spain and Japan, countries where the incidence of the novel coronavirus infection is worsening.
As of yesterday, Germany’s total cases had risen to 1,565, meanwhile France has recorded 1,784 cases, nearly double its figures from earlier this week. Spain and Japan recorded 1,695 and 587 cases respectively.
The GGCT alerts Macau residents – both those who intend to travel to these countries and those who are already there – to reconsider their travel plans. Avoidance of non-essential travel to those destinations is recommended.
In a statement, the GGCT said that it would keep monitoring the latest developments of the situation.
Since Tuesday, the Macau SAR government has required individuals who have travelled to Germany, France, Spain or Japan in the 14 days prior to their arrival in the city to undergo a 14-day quarantine before entry.
Macau residents will be quarantined at a domestic venue deemed appropriate by the health authorities, whereas non-Macau residents will be placed at a designated hotel at their own expense.
This is the third time that the GGCT has issued a Level 2 Travel Alert, having issued similar alerts to South Korea and Italy two weeks ago. The latest data shows that South Korea has seen a total of 7,755 Covid-19 cases and 61 deaths, while Italy has recorded 10,419 cases and 631 deaths. Anthony Lam, Lynzy Valles
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