Gov’t confirms 31 positive cases

Macau is battling with its worst Covid-19 outbreak yet as the city recorded 31 new SARS-CoV-2 infections of unknown origin as of 10 p.m. today.

The government has not stated whether the latest 10 cases were detected from mass tests or close contacts of the 21 positive cases confirmed earlier.

According to a statement, the cases involve 21 women and 10 men, aged between eight months and 89 years old. Eight of the 31 were symptomatic confirmed cases, while 23 are classified as asymptomatic.

Authorities followed up a total of 602 people, including 146 close contacts.

In a press conference at 5 p.m. today, when the tally was still 21, pulmonologist Alvis Lo, director of the Health Bureau (SSM), pointed out although eight of them have developed symptoms, all symptoms were mild and the people were in a stable condition. The remaining 13 people showed no symptoms as of the time of earlier’s press conference.

Meanwhile, not all infected people were vaccinated. Four people were completely unvaccinated, three had only had their first dose, five had received only two doses and the remaining nine had received a booster shot.

Of the 21 people, 16 are women and five are men. They are aged between eight months and 89 years. The 21 people were separated into two epidemiological clusters consisting of 17 and four people respectively.

Thirteen of those in the 17-person cluster are non-local workers from Myanmar, living together in an apartment in Im Lai Building. Another infected person is a neighbor of the thirteen. Another two people are colleagues at Padre Modern Cuisine near the Government Headquarters. The remaining person is the employer of the 13 non-local workers.