2009 Flu Pandemic in Hong Kong - First Case

First Case

On 1 May, Hong Kong Chief Executive Donald Tsang told reporters that tests performed by the Department of Health and the University of Hong Kong confirmed that a 25-year old Mexican citizen who had traveled to the city via Shanghai on a China Eastern Airlines flight was infected with swine flu. In light of this, Tsang raised Hong Kong's influenza pandemic alertness level to "emergency" from "serious". This first confirmed case of swine flu in Hong Kong was also the first confirmed case in Asia. The man had developed a fever after arriving in Hong Kong, and was then isolated in Princess Margaret Hospital, the hospital designated to handle swine flu cases. The hotel where the traveller had stayed, the Metropark Hotel in Wanchai, was quarantined and about 200 guests and 100 staff were instructed to remain in the hotel for seven days regardless of whether or not they had come into contact with the traveller. Authorities also made an effort to track down anybody who had made contact with the traveller, with Chow appealing to those who were on the same flight as the traveller to contact health officials.

The guests and staff were released on 8 May, when the quarantine expired. Tsang was at the hotel for the release, speaking to reporters and with those who had been quarantined. To compensate for the quarantine, the government offered guests two free nights of accommodation at other hotels in Hong Kong. The Mexican traveller was also discharged after treatment with the antiviral drug Tamiflu and the Centre for Health Protection confirmed that he was no longer carrying the virus.