Xie Feng (right), commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the HKSAR, shakes hands with Micronesia’s Honorary Consul in Hong Kong Tan Siu-lin during Friday’s ceremony. (PARKER ZHENG / CHINA DAILY)
Another Hong Kong cruise passenger, quarantined in the city after being flown back from Japan last week, was confirmed to have contracted the novel coronavirus on Friday, taking the local tally to 94.
The latest patient diagnosed with the deadly disease is a 61-year-old woman who had shown no symptom of the illness earlier, according to Chuang Shuk-kwan, who heads the Department of Health’s Communicable Disease Branch.
The patient was among 106 passengers on the stricken Diamond Princess cruise ship who returned on the SAR government’s first chartered flight on Feb 20. She had boarded the ship with several relatives, including her husband, who shared a room with her on board.
So far, eight of the 218 passengers evacuated from Japan have been confirmed to be infected.
More than 60 specialist out-patient clinics in Hong Kong began on Friday to test residents for the coronavirus, including those aged below 18 and those showing minor symptoms.
In another development, Micronesia’s Honorary Consul in the Hong Kong SAR, Tan Siu-lin, donated US$1 million on Friday to China to help in the fight against the coronavirus.
The donation was made in Tan’s own name to the Hubei provincial branch of the Red Cross Society of China through the Foreign Ministry for the purchase of medical supplies for front-line medical staff.
“I hope this can help China win the battle against the epidemic and strengthen cooperation and friendship between Micronesia and China,” Tan said.
Accepting the donation at a ceremony on Friday morning, Xie Feng, commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the HKSAR, expressed gratitude to Tan for his generosity to the Chinese people at this difficult time. He also thanked Hong Kong residents who have donated supplies or taken part in the anti-epidemic battle in Hubei’s provincial capital, Wuhan.
Gu Mengyan contributed to this story.
