Hong Kong plans four-day lockdown amid mass testing: media

Local media reports on Marach 1 of a pending lockdown triggered waves of panic-buying as residents emptied supermarket shelves and stripped pharmacies of supplies. - Reuters

HONG KONG (Bloomberg): Hong Kong is planning a four-day limited lockdown at the start of a compulsory Covid-19 testing blitz later this month, local news outlet HK01 reported Wednesday (March 2).

The preliminary plan is to test the financial hub’s 7.4 million people from March 26 to April 3, HK01 said, citing people it did not identify.

The Hong Kong government, which will consult with Beijing before finalising the plan, has taken into account expert opinions that it will be most effective to conduct the mass testing when the outbreak "naturally eases,” according to the report.

Local media reports on Tuesday of a pending lockdown -- with few details of its severity or length -- triggered waves of panic-buying as residents emptied supermarket shelves and stripped pharmacies of supplies. Those reports said officials aimed to carry out three city-wide tests over nine days, while keeping core financial services including the stock exchange running.

HK01 said residents will have to stay at home during the first four days of the nine-day citywide testing, except from going to pharmacies or supermarkets. The limited lockdown is expected to be lifted from the fifth day, according to the report.

The city has been grappling with its worst coronavirus outbreak to date, with one of the world’s highest Covid death rates. New cases have ballooned from a few hundred a day to more than 32,000 on Tuesday.

Hong Kong has contacted major supermarkets, urging them to ensure a sufficient supply of goods, according to a government statement Tuesday.

The government has also been working with neighbouring Guangdong province and Shenzhen "to broaden the means to ensure the stable supplies of fresh food, vegetables and other goods,” it said.

"We are aware that even when such measures as ‘city lockdown’ or ‘home confinement’ have been implemented in places where other financial markets are located, the financial operations remain unaffected.”