Nearly half of Hong Kong's population has already caught Covid

[HONG KONG] About half of Hong Kong's 7.4 million people have already been infected with Covid-19, according to an estimate of the damage caused by the deadly Omicron wave that's overwhelmed the city.

Researchers at the University of Hong Kong determined that about 3.6 million Hongkongers caught the disease through Mar 14. That's up from an estimated 1.8 million infections they concluded had developed through Mar 7 based on disease modelling and an in-depth analysis of the ongoing outbreak.

While the current wave peaked on Mar 4, many more people will catch Covid before it ends, the researchers said. The total is likely to reach about 4.5 million, they said. More than 5,100 people will die from Covid by May 1, the researchers forecast, up from an earlier estimate of about 5,010. Elderly residents of care homes account for 59 per cent of total deaths, they said. BLOOMBERG