Xi urges Hong Kong to get control as COVID-19 cases surge

Hospitals in Hong Kong are struggling to keep up with an influx of new patients amid record numbers of new coronavirus infections as the city’s leadership doggedly sticks to its “zero-COVID” strategy

HONG KONG -- Hospitals in Hong Kong were struggling Wednesday to keep up with an influx of new coronavirus patients amid record numbers of new infections as the city's leadership doggedly sticks to its “zero-COVID” strategy, and China's leader Xi Jinping said it was the local government's “overriding task” to control the situation.

Hong Kong is facing its worst outbreak of the pandemic, topping 2,000 new COVID-19 cases per day this week. The city government has already instituted strict rules, banning gatherings of more than two households.

But health care facilities are beginning to overflow, forcing the city's Caritas Medical Center on Wednesday to treat some patients in beds outside the building.

Xi personally issued instructions and directed Vice Premier Han Zheng to express to Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam the high level of concern Chinese Communist Party leaders had about the city's ongoing outbreak, according to Wen Wei Po, a pro-Beijing news outlet.