The Macau government announced today the city's 30th COVID-19 case, a 52-year-old Australian national who visited San Francisco from February 27 to March 4 with his wife.
According to a statement by the Novel Coronavirus Response and Coordination Centre, the man visited the UK from March 4 to15.
On March 15, he took Virgin Atlantic Airways flight VS206 (seat 66A) from London's Heathrow Airport to Hong Kong where he arrived on the folllowing day. He arrived later that day in Macau via the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge.
The statement did not say whether the couple arrived together in Macau.
The statement quoted the Australian national as saying that he stayed at the Pousada de Coloane hotel between March 16-20 and that he remained in the area during those days, including Cheoc Van Beach near the hotel.
"Pousada" is the Portuguese word for "inn".
On March 19, he visited the Venetian resort in Cotai, arriving there public bus route 26A. He was refused entry into the casino because he didn't have his passport with him so that he merely walked around the resort's non-gaming amenities. At that night, he had dinner at "La Gondola" restaurant in Cheoc Van Beach.
On March 20, he planned to return to Australia via the Hong Kong International Airport, but he was denied entry into the special administrative region so that he returned to Macau.
The statement did not say why he was denied entry by the Hong Kong authorities. '
Based on the regulations in force at that time, upon arrival in Macau he was transferred to the Grande Coloane Hotel for medical observation.
The hotel is one of Macau's "quarantine hotels" for two weeks of mandatory observation in response to the COVID-19 threat.
The patient tested positive for the novel coronavirus today. The statement described his condition as "normal". He has been transferred to the isolation ward of the public Conde de S. Januario Hospital Centre, while wife has been transferred to the Public Health Clinical Centre in Coloane for medical observation.
9th 'quarantine hotel' opens
Meanwhile, the Macau Government Tourism Office (MGTO) announced today that it opened the city's ninth hotel designated for medical observation.
According to an MGTO statement, the 90-room Grand Harbour Hotel is located in Travessa de Lam Mau on the Macau peninsula.
The nine "quarantine hotels" provide about 2,200 rooms, according to MGTO data.
The statement said that the "government will continue to look for more hotels that can be converted into medical observation venues."
The statement pointed out that the designated hotels "are committed to social responsibility."
Chief Executive Ho Iat Seng urged Macau's six gaming operators yesterday to provide, if needed, quarantine hotel rooms as part of their social responsibility that Macau people expect from them.
Most major hotels in Macau are owned by gaming operators.
