HONG KONG, April 10 (Xinhua) -- The last Hong Kong resident who had been diagnosed with COVID-19 while aboard the virus-hit cruise ship Diamond Princess on Friday returned to Hong Kong from Japan upon recovery, said China's Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government.
In early February, a cluster of confirmed COVID-19 cases occurred on the Diamond Princess, initially carrying around 3,700 passengers and crew from more than 50 countries and regions, which thereafter had been quarantined at Yokohama Port south of Tokyo until late March.
A spokesperson for the Security Bureau of HKSAR government introduced that out of the some 3,700 people onboard, there were some 370 Hong Kong residents. Among the 712 confirmed COVID-19 cases associated with the cruise ship, 76 patients were Hong Kong residents who were thereafter hospitalised in Japan for isolation and treatment.
Three Hong Kong residents among them unfortunately passed away, while the remaining 73 patients were discharged from hospital and have all returned to Hong Kong or their places of residence, the spokesperson said.
As for other Hong Kong residents on board the cruise ship, the HKSAR government sent three batches of chartered flights to bring back a total of 193 Hong Kong residents between Feb 19 and 23. Another 144 Hong Kong residents returned on their own way by other flights, including 25 close contacts of the confirmed patients, the spokesperson said.
The spokesperson added that of the 231 Hong Kong passengers of the Diamond Princess who were admitted to a quarantine center for 14 days upon their arrival, nine subsequently tested positive for COVID-19 and had to be sent to hospitals for isolation and treatment.
The HKSAR government expressed profound condolences on the passing of the patients and the deepest sympathies to their families, said the spokesperson.
The spokesperson also said that the government expressed thanks to the Office of the Commissioner of the Chinese Foreign Ministry in HKSAR and the Chinese Embassy in Japan, saying that the incident could not have been resolved smoothly without their staunch support that rendered to the HKSAR government, as well as the cooperation given by the Japanese authorities.
