Hong Kong to distribute 170,000 RAT kits following sewage COVID-19 detection

HONG KONG, May 18 (Xinhua) -- The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government said Wednesday that it will distribute about 170,000 sets of the COVID-19 rapid antigen test (RAT) kits to people in some areas of the city as part of a follow-up on recent detection of the COVID-19 virus in sewage samples.

The test kits will be distributed to residents, cleaning workers, and property management staff working in the areas with positive sewage testing results showing relatively high viral loads, in order to help identify infected persons, it said.

The HKSAR government also urged RAT kit users to report any positive results for COVID-19 via the government's online platform.

In efforts to combat COVID-19, the HKSAR government's Environmental Protection Department and the Drainage Services Department have strengthened the sampling of sewage in all districts of Hong Kong for COVID-19 virus testing.

On Wednesday, Hong Kong registered 127 new COVID-19 cases by nucleic acid tests, and 202 additional cases through self-reported rapid antigen tests, official data showed.