(Bloomberg) -- Hong Kong is warning residents to abide by home quarantine orders and social distancing regulations or they will face criminal prosecution and fines, as the Asian financial center continues to battle a resurgence in imported coronavirus cases.
The city has already caught more than 70 people violating some of the more than 50,000 home quarantine orders, sent them to government isolation centers and will be pursuing criminal charges against them, Chief Executive Carrie Lam told reporters at a weekly briefing Tuesday.
“This is no time to let down our guard,” she said, adding that her government has a “zero tolerance approach” to people breaking quarantine.
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“For people subjected to home quarantine, please think carefully. Is it really worth it, if you just want to go out? Your career, your future, your education may be affected,” she said.
New Wave
Lam's stark warning is Hong Kong's latest attempt to ensure compliance after rolling out new measures to battle a second wave of virus cases that's emerged in recent weeks. The city had initially managed to largely contain the spread of Covid-19 through contact tracing, mandatory quarantines, early school closures and a social distancing campaign.
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On Friday, Hong Kong banned gatherings of more than four people, ordered restaurants to keep 1.5 meters (5 feet) between tables and shuttered gyms and cinemas.
Those measures were in response to the record numbers of new cases after hundreds of Hong Kong residents rushed back to the city to avoid a March 19 government deadline subjecting all international arrivals to a 14-day self-quarantine.
The city reported 65 new infections Friday and has seen its tally more than triple in two weeks. As of Tuesday, it had more than 680 cases.
Lam said mainland China's recent drop in new virus cases did not justify Hong Kong relaxing its border restrictions or mandatory quarantine orders for Chinese citizens coming into the city. She said that although many cases in China appear to be imported, “the situation is still fluid” and could change.
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