Death of Hong Kong woman forced to wait for Covid-19 quarantine spot came as health staff overloaded by fourth wave of cases, coroner hears
- Centre for Health Protection official tells inquest that expansion of Covid-19 task force could not keep pace with fourth wave surge
- Doctor defends nursing decision not to prioritise case of woman with chronic conditions found dead three days after daughter was isolated with Covid-19
Hong Kong health staff battling the Covid-19 fourth wave were swamped around the time an elderly woman with chronic illnesses died alone at home before a quarantine space could be found for her, an inquest heard on Wednesday.
Dr Albert Au Ka-wing, a principal medical and health officer at the Centre for Health Protection, told the Coroner’s Court that the expansion of a task force designed to tackle the pandemic could not keep up with the surge in cases as the fourth wave hammered the city in late 2020.
“The surge came too quickly and rapidly, and on top of that, there were a number of mass evacuations … which posed an extra burden on our workforce,” Au said.
There was an enforced exodus of residents from two residential complexes in the first half of December.
Lui Suk-hang, 62, was found dead on December 12, 2020. She was listed as a close contact of her daughter, also her sole support, who had been sent to an isolation centre with Covid-19 three days before the body was found.
