Seven Air Macau crewmembers to join Wuhan rescue mission

Seven staff members from the government and seven crewmembers from Air Macau will play core roles in a rescue mission for Macau residents in Wuhan to be conducted on March 7, Lei Chin Ion, director of the Health Bureau (SSM), has announced.

The seven government members will comprise of two doctors and three nurses from the SSM, and two representatives of the Macao Government Tourism Office’s (MGTO) Tourism Crisis Management Office (GGCT).

Although the health authority head maintained that as few people as possible should be involved to minimize risk, the local flag carrier will assign three pilots and four cabin crew to assist in the mission.

This first repatriation mission is expected to bring back 60 Macau ID holders from and around Wuhan. However, Lei stressed that fewer people than that may be repatriated, depending on their actual health condition.

In order to qualify for the flight, the ID holders will need to arrange their own connecting transport to the airport in Wuhan. Furthermore, they must submit a health evaluation form, which they already have done, the SSM director disclosed. Final checks will be conducted at Wuhan’s airport.

It is hoped that the 60 people being repatriated have understood the requirements. Inês Chan, an official from the MGTO, said that the office has been reminding them about the connecting transport.

The Air Macau charter flight, the flight number of which has not been undisclosed, is expected to depart for Wuhan at 9:30 a.m. this Saturday. The staff and crew will fly to Wuhan to facilitate checks at the airport. As such, the SSM is aiming for 4 p.m. as the time for the return flight.

Checks at the airport will include measuring body temperature. The 60 will need to pass several screening measures before boarding the plane. Protective kits, consisting of a facemask, hand sanitizer, protective wear and a diaper, will also be distributed to them.

The SSM previously announced that nobody would be allowed to leave their seat during the return flight. Therefore, the diapers are being distributed in case of need.

Once they have touched down in Macau, all the passengers will be transferred to vehicles parked right next to the aircraft. The repatriated citizens will be sent to a quarantine facility on Coloane Alto for 14 days of observation. Six staff members from both the MGTO and Air Macau will also be quarantined.

The MGTO has unveiled the particulars of the returnees-to-be. The 60 preliminarily qualified represent 33 families. Nineteen are under 18 years old, six of which are under 5 years old. Of the six children under 5, two are infants, one is 1 year old, two are 2 years old and one is aged 4. The six children have temporarily been made eligible to fly, as they will travel with their guardians.

Aside from the 60 being repatriated, there are about another 120 Macau residents currently in Hubei Province.

Meanwhile, a group of five foreign workers currently being quarantined in Zhuhai will be let out on March 5. They will be taken straight to Macau in a charter vehicle.

The Education and Youth Affairs Bureau said that it has conducted spot checks on some extracurricular education centers, including continuing education facilities, after the official resumption date.

As of yesterday, the bureau recorded about a 60% reopen rate, with only one-third of all students resuming their lessons or tuition at the venues.

Ninth patient recovers

After Macau’s 28th day without a new infection yesterday, the city’s ninth Covid-19 patient, a 29-year-old female floral supervisor at a Cotai integrated resort, recovered from the virus. The patient was discharged yesterday after being hospitalized for 29 days. Following the Health Bureau’s latest measures, she was then sent to the quarantine center on Coloane Alto for recovery observation. Before being discharged, she was tested twice for Covid-19 on March 1 and 3 respectively, like other cases. In addition, a chest scan was also performed. The scan showed no signs of pneumonia. The patient attended an orchestra performance in Zhuhai on January 19, and spent about three hours with the eighth local case on the evening of January 24. The next day, the patient developed a fever and cough. On February 4, she approached the Conde de São Januário Hospital (CHCSJ) for medical assistance and was admitted. With the ninth case being discharged, there is only one Macau resident still in hospital with Covid-19, in a stable condition, according to the CHCSJ.