CHP updates on clusters of students participating in exchange tours who developed gastroenteritis symptoms
The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health (DH) is today (March 17) investigating a cluster of acute gastroenteritis (AGE) symptoms among six secondary students who participated in an exchange tour to Xiamen last week. In view of the recent high activity of norovirus, the CHP has issued a letter to all schools in Hong Kong to provide health advice on the transmission, prevention and infection control of AGE. The CHP also organised an online meeting for the Education Bureau (EDB) and the service contractors of exchange tours on March 13 to provide health advice on the prevention of communicable diseases and food safety during the trip. The CHP will continue to provide health tips on outbound travel to students, teachers and parents through these service contractors. Furthermore, the CHP has stepped up publicity and education efforts at various boundary control points to remind members of the public to observe hygiene and be vigilant against viral gastroenteritis.
The latest cluster involves a secondary school in Kwun Tong District. A total of 36 teachers and students participated in an exchange tour to Xiamen between March 13 and 15, during which six students developed AGE symptoms, including vomiting,diarrhoea and fever, from about 9pm on March 14 to about 7am the next morning. Five of them sought medical attention in Xiamen, and none required hospitalisation.
The CHP is investigating the source of this AGE outbreak from different aspects. Preliminary epidemiological investigations revealed that all six affected persons had not consumed any common food items other than the group meals and had no other common exposure history in Hong Kong prior to their departure. Hence, at this stage, the CHP could not rule out the possibility that the cases were infected by consuming contaminated food. The CHP has notified the Mainland health authority of the relevant epidemiological investigations and information regarding the restaurants concerned. The CHP is collecting stool specimens from the patients for laboratory testing and has notified the EDB of the relevant assessment.
Regarding the three clusters of students participating in exchange tours to Shaoguan who developed gastroenteritis symptoms earlier, the CHP's follow-up investigation found that three more students developed gastroenteritis symptoms on March 7 and 9 respectively, bringing the total number of affected persons from the previously announced 52 teachers and students to 55. Among them, 16 have sought medical attention, and three have tested positive for norovirus. The CHP will continue to work closely with the Guangdong authority and take necessary follow-up actions.
Apart from the Mainland, there have been recent outbreaks of AGE in other popular travel destinations for Hong Kong citizens. In Japan, the number of patients seeking medical attention for infective gastroenteritis has increased in recent weeks, and large-scale food poisoning outbreaks caused by norovirus have been reported in various places in recent months. In Singapore, the number of medical consultations related to acute diarrhoeal illnesses was higher than the same period last year. In Taiwan, the number of medical consultations related todiarrhoea has remained high in recent months, reaching a record high over the same period in the past five years. Test results showed that the majority of the outbreaks were caused by norovirus. Members of the public should remain vigilant and maintain personal, environmental and food hygiene at all times to minimise the risk of being infected while travelling.
Viral gastroenteritis is more commonly seen in cooler months and can be caused by a variety of viruses, most commonly norovirus and rotavirus. The main symptoms of viral gastroenteritis are diarrhoea and vomiting. Other symptoms include headache, fever, and abdominal cramps. In general, the symptoms begin one to two days following infection with a virus that causes gastroenteritis. Depending on the type of viruses causing the illness, however, the symptoms may last for one to 10 days.
Alcohol-based handrub should not substitute hand hygiene with liquid soap and water, as alcohol does not effectively kill some viruses frequently causing AGE, for example, norovirus. To prevent foodborne diseases, members of the public are advised to observe good personal, food and environmental hygiene. When eating out, the following points should be observed:
Ensure proper personal hygiene;
Wash hands thoroughly before handling food and eating, after using the toilet or after changing diapers;
Wear gloves and surgical mask when disposing of vomitus or faecal matter, and wash hands afterwards;
Clean and disinfect contaminated areas or items promptly and thoroughly with diluted household bleach (by adding one part of bleach containing 5.25 per cent sodium hypochlorite to 49 parts of water). Wash hands thoroughly afterwards;
Maintain good indoor ventilation;
Pay attention to food hygiene;
Use separate utensils to handle raw and cooked food;
Avoid food that is not thoroughly cooked;
Drink boiled water; and
Do not patronise unlicensed food premises or food stalls.
The public may visit the CHP's website for more information and preventive advice onviral gastroenteritis.
Director of Hong Kong Observatory highlights HKO's latest services and annual weather outlook
The Director of the Hong Kong Observatory (HKO), Dr Chan Pak-wai, hosted a press briefing today (March 18) to recap the weather in 2024 and elaborate on the weather outlook for Hong Kong this year as well as the HKO's latest services.
Dr Chan said that 2024 was the warmest year on record globally according to the assessment of the World Meteorological Organization (Note). The past 10 years (2015 to 2024) were also the 10 warmest years on record globally. Locally, with a total of 11 months being warmer than usual, including the record-breaking monthly mean temperatures in April and October, 2024 was the warmest year on record with the annual mean temperature reaching 24.8 degrees, 1.3 degrees above the 1991-2020 normal. The annual mean minimum temperature of 22.8 degrees and annual mean maximum temperature of 27.3 degrees were respectively the highest and second highest on record.
Looking ahead to 2025, the tropical cyclone season in Hong Kong is expected to start in June or earlier and cease in October or later this year. There will likely be about five to eight tropical cyclones coming within 500 kilometres of Hong Kong during the year, which is normal to above normal. As the climate warming continues, the annual mean temperature in Hong Kong is expected to be above normal this year. The annual rainfall in Hong Kong is expected to be near normal, ranging from 2 100 millimetres to 2 700mm. However, Hong Kong would still be affected by rainstorms and localised heavy rain. Members of the public are reminded to be prepared for the rain and tropical cyclone seasons.
Dr Chan highlighted the continual enhancement of the HKO's various services. With the rainy season approaching, the radar and satellite imagery services on the Observatory's website and "MyObservatory" mobile application will be enhanced. The update frequency of radar images covering 128km and 256km ranges will be increased from the current 12 minutes to every 6 minutes. In addition to the current rainfall rate imagery at 3km above sea level for the 64km range, new imagery at a height of 2km will be added, allowing the public to better grasp the rainfall situation in the lower atmosphere. Furthermore, the update frequency of the Fengyun-4B satellite images covering western Asia will be increased from hourly to every 15 minutes. "All-day Visible" satellite imagery and aerosol optical depth imagery from the Republic of Korea's GK-2B satellite will also be introduced to enhance the monitoring of weather and visibility conditions over southern China and the northern part of the South China Sea.
To strengthen dissemination of weather information to enable the public to prepare for weather changes in advance, the HKO will add graphical rainfall information for various districts in Hong Kong and will, on a trial basis, use video in which forecasters will explain future weather changes on camera this year. The graphical rainfall information will be launched on the "MyObservatory" mobile application and website in the next couple of months, while videos of forecasters explaining future weather changes will be provided in some of the Weather Notes articles published in the second half of this year.
Moreover, weather information for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area was launched at the end of last year on the "MyObservatory" mobile application to assist citizens with travelling in the area to obtain the latest official weather information. Meanwhile, the "Dr. Tin" chatbot also supports a voice function on the "MyObservatory" mobile application. Members of the public may update to the latest version to enjoy the new features.
With the rapid development of AI, the HKO added the forecasting products of two AI-powered models as well as upper-air forecast charts on the "Earth Weather" webpage last year. The HKO will continue to enhance the "Earth Weather" webpage this year with the addition of more computer model forecast products, including the forecasting of chances of thunderstorms, to enable the public to understand the weather changes more comprehensively.
The HKO's open day activities this year will be conducted on March 22 and 23 (Saturday and Sunday) with the World Meteorological Day's theme "Closing the Early Warning Gap Together". It will provide a brief overview of the long-standing collaboration between the Observatory and meteorological authorities around the world over the years, and showcase how the HKO applies the latest technology to provide various services, enhancing the public's understanding and awareness of climate change and extreme weather. Apart from participating inperson with a valid admission ticket, members of the public can also visit the virtual tour on the Hong Kong Observatory Open Day 2025 webpage, which will be launched on March 22, to learn more about the HKO's work and services.
Dr Chan's speech at the press briefing is available on the HKO's website (www.hko.gov.hk/en/dhkovoice/files/speech20250318e.pdf).
Note: The annual average global temperature in 2024 was 1.55 degrees above pre-industrial levels, marking it as the first year the 1.5 degrees level was exceeded. Although an individual year surpassing the 1.5 degrees level does not mean that the long-term temperature goals of the Paris Agreement are not achievable, it indicates the urgent need for a significant reduction in global carbon emissions to avoid the further worsening of climate change impacts.
Director of Hong Kong Observatory highlights HKO's latest services and annual weather outlook Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
