Editorial : Severity of pandemic justifies lockdown
文章日期:2020年7月22日

【明報專訊】THE THIRD WAVE of COVID-19 infections in Hong Kong rages on. Amid the continuous outbreaks in the community and the spike in new cases of confirmed infection, the entire system against the pandemic, including virus tests, quarantine facilities and negative-pressure wards in public hospitals, has come under increasing strain. Several epidemic experts have suggested that the government may have to issue a stay-at-home order to prohibit people from leaving homes. Stay-at-home orders or lockdown measures can have enormous impacts on the economy and people's livelihood. Hong Kong has been spared from taking this step so far since the outbreak of the pandemic at the beginning of this year. But the grimness of the situation at present has gone far beyond that of the previous two waves. The entire healthcare system could collapse if the situation continues to worsen. The authorities must exhaust all possible means to prevent the worst scenario from happening. Over the past fortnight, the authorities have repeatedly tightened anti-pandemic measures drastically. It is still unknown if those measures are enough to curb the outbreak. In case there is still no sign of the situation turning for the better and the number of new cases in a single day remains three-digit for a long time, the city should take the right step and impose lockdown even at a hefty price.

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