Two more people died of the novel coronavirus disease on Tuesday, raising Macau’s COVID-19 death toll to 32, the Novel Coronavirus Response and Coordination Centre announced yesterday.
According to a statement by the centre, both of the female victims, aged 91 and 94 respectively, had suffered from underlying diseases.
Neither of them had been vaccinated against the novel coronavirus.
The first six of the 32 COVID-19 fatalities were reported during Macau’s previous COVID-19 outbreak that began on June 18 this year and started to subside in late July, colloquially known as 618 outbreak in Cantonese.
The seventh fatality was reported on December 13, which came after Macau switched to an adjusted anti-COVID-19 approach that implicitly allows constant transmissions of the novel coronavirus in the community, which got off the ground three weeks ago.
The Macau government was pursuing a dynamic zero-COVID approach when the city was hit by the 618 outbreak. The local government’s then dynamic zero-COVID model aimed to cut off transmission chains and eventually reach zero cases in the community after the novel coronavirus had been imported into the city every time.
In addition, the previous dynamic zero-COVID approach required the implementation of strict border entry curbs.
Macau logs 86 new patients on Tuesday
Meanwhile, yesterday’s statement also announced that 86 new patients diagnosed with the novel coronavirus disease were admitted to the Health Bureau’s (SSM) isolation and treatment facilities on Tuesday.
The Health Bureau’s isolation and treatment facilities currently comprise the public Conde de São Januário Hospital Centre, the Public Health Clinical Centre in Coloane, and hotels used for isolation treatment.
2 vaccination facilities to close
Meanwhile, the Novel Coronavirus Response and Coordination Centre announced in a separate statement yesterday that the COVID-19 vaccination facility at the Macau Forum complex in Zape will close from today.
In addition, the statement also announced that the COVID-19 inoculation facility at the Mong Ha Sports Centre will also close on Saturday.
The statement also said that those who have booked a COVID-19 jab at the Macau Forum vaccination facility can visit the Ilha Verde Health Centre, the Praia do Manduco (Ha Van) Health Centre, the Nossa Senhora do Carmo-Lago Health Centre, or the Ocean Gardens Health Centre at the booked date and time for their jab.
Meanwhile, the COVID-19 vaccination facility at the outpatient department of the public Conde de São Januário Hospital Centre has been suspended since Tuesday as a part of the venue has now been used for the government’s ongoing battle against the current COVID-19 wave.
The government has also reminded that those who have been infected with the novel coronavirus should suspend getting a COVID-19 jab for at least three months. More specifically, they should only get their jab at least three months after their last COVID-19 positive result, either in a nucleic acid test (NAT) or a rapid antigen test (RAT, aka self-test).
Meanwhile, according to local media reports, the schedules of the city’s public bus services have been significantly reduced because many bus drivers have been infected with COVID-19.
This file photo taken about two weeks ago shows the COVID-19 vaccination facility at the Mong Ha Sports Centre, which has again been used as an inoculation facility since December 14 after its closure in June this year. However, the vaccination facility will again close from Saturday. – Photo: GCS
