Macau recorded a total of 340 COVID-19 infections in three days from Thursday to Saturday, according to data released by the Novel Coronavirus Response and Coordination Centre.
A statement by the centre yesterday announced that 53 COVID-19 infections were recorded on Saturday, when no new COVID-19 patients were admitted to treatment facilities.
According to previous announcements by the centre, 170 COVID-19 infections were recorded on Thursday, when two new COVID-19 patients were admitted to the public Conde de São Januário Hospital Centre for treatment, while 117 infections were reported on Friday, when six new patients were admitted to the public hospital.
Consequently, a total of 181 new COVID-19 patients were admitted to treatment facilities between May 1 and June 17.
Official data indicate that Macau’s current peak of COVID-19 infections, which started early last month, is now easing.
Macau has not recorded any COVID-19 fatalities for six consecutive days, from Monday last week to Saturday, after the latest COVID-19 fatality was recorded on Sunday last week.
Macau’s official COVID-19 death toll currently stands at 123.
1st anniversary of ‘618’ outbreak
Meanwhile, it has now been one year since Macau suffered its biggest COVID-19 outbreak in the context of pursuing a dynamic zero-COVID approach. The incident is known in Chinese as 618 outbreak because of the fact that it started on June 18, 2022. During the 618 outbreak, stringent COVID-19 prevention and control measures were implemented, including numerous rounds of citywide nucleic acid tests (NATs), the mandatory closure of non-essential businesses for 12 days including casinos, and the mandatory wearing of facemasks for 22 days for all those out and about, with the objective of enabling Macau to reach zero COVID-19 infections.
Various special COVID-19 measures were in force for around 50 days, before Macau won its battle against the 618 outbreak and correspondingly returned to its normalised COVID-19 prevention and control period on August 8, 2022, i.e., normalised COVID-19 period in the context of adopting a dynamic zero-COVID policy.
Finally, the Macau government abandoned its long-running dynamic zero-COVID approach on December 8 last year, almost three years after the COVID-19 pandemic began to affect Macau in early 2020, when the city recorded its first novel coronavirus case on January 22, 2020.
The Macau government decided to abandon its zero-COVID policy in conjunction with the central government’s corresponding COVID-19 decision applicable to the mainland.
Following the local government’s decision, Macau suffered its first peak of widespread COVID-19 infections around the Christmas holiday, before it began to subside in around the middle of January this year.
A one-month period transitioning the city from the zero-COVID approach ended on January 8, when the local government started to tackle COVID-19 as an endemic disease.
Macau began to be affected by a new peak of COVID-19 infections early last month, which is now declining.
