Health authorities in densely-populated Hong Kong and Singapore have warned that COVID-19 cases are spiking, as a resurgent wave spreads through Asia.
The virus’ activity in Hong Kong is now “quite high,” Albert Au, head of the Communicable Disease Branch of the city’s Center for Health Protection, told local media this week. The percentage of respiratory samples testing COVID-positive in Hong Kong recently reached its highest in a year.
Severe cases—including deaths—also reached its highest level in about a year to 31 in the week through May 3, the center’s data shows. While the resurgence is yet to match the infection peaks seen in the past two years, rising viral load found in sewage water and COVID-related medical consultations and hospitalizations suggest the virus is actively spreading in the city of over 7 million people.
Rival financial hub Singapore is also on COVID alert. The city-state’s health ministry released its first update on infection numbers in almost a year this month, as the estimated number of cases jumped 28% to 14,200 in the week through May 3 from the previous seven days while daily hospitalization rose around 30%. Singapore now only provides case updates when there is a noticeable spike.
While the increase in cases could be due to factors including waning population immunity, there is no indication that the circulating variants are more transmissible—or cause more severe cases—than during the pandemic, Singapore’s health ministry said.
The surge in two of Asia’s biggest cities comes as COVID has risen across the region in the past few months, with waves of the now-endemic disease swelling periodically. Health authorities have called on people to keep their vaccinations updated, reminding high-risk individuals to get booster shots.
Unlike other respiratory pathogens that tend to be more active during colder months, COVID’s comeback just as much of the northern hemisphere enters into summer shows the virus can still sicken a large swath of the population even when the weather is hot.
Hong Kong singer Eason Chan also came down with COVID and had to cancel his concerts in Kaohsiung, Taiwan originally scheduled for later this week, the concert’s official account on Chinese social media Weibo said Thursday.
China is on track to see a COVID wave reach last year’s summer peak, according to data from the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention. The COVID test positivity rate more than doubled among patients seeking a diagnosis at hospitals across the mainland in the five weeks through May 4.
Meanwhile, Thailand’s Department of Disease Control has reported there have been two cluster outbreaks this year, with cases rising after April’s annual Songkran festival, which brings together crowds.
