Hong Kong bans Air India flights for 2 weeks over imported coronavirus cases
Air India aircraft are seen parked at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) in Mumbai on May 28, 2020. (INDRANIL MUKHERJEE / AFP)
HONG KONG — Air India has been banned from flying to Hong Kong for two weeks after a dozen of passengers onboard a flight operated by the airline tested positive for COVID-19, Hong Kong’s Center for Health Protection (CHP) said on Wednesday.
A total of 13 passengers on an Air India flight from Delhi on Aug 14 were confirmed to have infected with COVID-19 after landing in Hong Kong, prompting the government to suspend its flights from Aug 18 to 31, Chuang Shuk-kwan, head of the CHP’s Communicable Disease Branch, told a media briefing.
It was the first time for the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government to ban flights by invoking the Prevention and Control of Disease (Regulation of Cross-boundary Conveyances and Travelers) Regulation, Chuang added.
Hong Kong reported 26 new COVID-19 infections on Wednesday, including three imported cases. All three cases involved travelers from India, Chuang said.
The latest infections brought the tally in the financial hub to 4,586.
Since July 25, travelers from high-risk countries, including India, have been required to present a negative COVID-19 testing result taken within 72 hours before boarding.
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