Hong Kong’s No 2 official urges calm over fears of chikungunya fever outbreak
City’s five cases recorded in a week are ‘from the mainland or imported from overseas’, Eric Chan says
Hong Kong’s No 2 official has urged the public not to panic over a possible outbreak of chikungunya fever, expressing confidence that infections can be contained with government workers stepping up mosquito control efforts.
Chief Secretary Eric Chan Kwok-ki made the appeal as Hong Kong reported five imported cases in a week, while Tuen Mun recorded high mosquito index levels that prompted authorities to speed up implementing pest control measures.
“The public does not need to panic as all the cases are from mainland China or imported from overseas. The most important thing is to take good care of yourself and be careful,” Chan told a radio programme on Saturday.
“We absolutely must prevent mosquitoes that might be carrying the virus from biting anyone. So, we have intensified mosquito eradication efforts at all our border crossings.”
His assurance came as the latest mosquito data released by the government suggested a boom in the pest’s numbers over the past month in So Kwun Wat in Tuen Mun.
The area recorded a gravidtrap index reading of 16.4 per cent, the highest among the results made available for the 13 districts surveyed.