HK confirms 1 more coronavirus case, 1 patient discharged

HONG KONG - Hong Kong confirmed a new case of the novel coronavirus pneumonia on Wednesday, bringing the total tally to 50.

The latest patient, a 51-year-old man, has been working with the 37th patient in a restaurant kitchen, said Chuang Shuk-kwan, head of the Communicable Disease Branch of the Centre for Health Protection.

Of the seven people who worked in the the area in the kitchen, two have been confirmed to have the disease, two tested negative, and three others are awaiting test results, Chuang said.

Eighteen other people who worked at the restaurant will be tested for the virus.

Chuang also confirmed that one patient has been cured of the disease and discharged from a hospital on Wednesday. The 25-year-old man had tested negative twice in two tests that were administered at least 24 hours apart. He had become the 18th confirmed case in Hong Kong on Feb 4, and the first to be discharged from a hospital in the city.

In a press conference on Wednesday, Sara Ho, the Hospital Authority's chief manager (Patient Safety and Risk Management), also expected several other patients to be discharged after recovery from the disease soon.

(With Xinhua inputs)