The Centre for Health Protection today said it is investigating 24 additional COVID-19 cases, of which six are imported and 18 are locally infected.

Among the locally infected cases, the sources of infection for two of them remain unknown. Such cases entail a 24-year-old man who lives in Cheung Yan House of Cheung Sha Wan Estate in Cheung Sha Wan and a 37-year-old man who lives in Tower 1 of New Haven in Tsuen Wan.

Meanwhile, six more cases, involving women aged between 28 and 69, were found to be related to Yat Kwai House at Kwai Chung Estate.

At a press briefing this afternoon, the centre's Communicable Disease Branch Head Dr Chuang Shuk-kwan said there are so far about 20 positive and preliminarily positive cases related to Yat Kwai House, involving 12 units on 13 floors facing different directions.

One more patron who visited Dragon Place restaurant in Aberdeen also tested positive for the virus. The centre will conduct an on-site inspection to ascertain the linkage between the two cases.

Additionally, two more confirmed cases are customers who purchased hamsters. One of them entails a 30-year-old woman who bought a hamster at Little Boss pet shop in Causeway Bay on January 11, while the other is a 23-year-old woman bought a hamster at Lttle Boss’ Mong Kok pet shop on January 4.

Dr Chuang added that there are more than 20 preliminary positive cases.

The infection source to one such case remains unknown. The case involves a 40-year-old man who works at construction sites and last went to work on January 19.

The centre is now investigating the places where he visited during the incubation period to ascertain the infection source.

The Government made a restriction-testing declaration this evening, covering 35-37 Nam Cheong Street, where the patient lives.

Separately, the centre announced that eight virus cases related to pet shops have been identified so far.

It has collected 738 environmental samples from 40 pet shops and relevant warehouses, among which 30 environmental samples tested positive. Two additional pet shops, i love rabbit on Lockhart Road in Causeway Bay and i love rabbit at Tai Po Plaza, had positive samples.

As a prudent measure, these two pet shops are included in a compulsory testing notice. Their staff members will have to undergo compulsory quarantine at a quarantine centre.

Noting that the Agriculture, Fisheries & Conservation Department had earlier collected positive samples from hamsters at a pet shop, the centre said it could not rule out the possibility that the positive test results yielded from the environmental samples were caused by infected pets.

In addition to the two pet shops, 39 premises, as well as the specified area in Wong Tai Sin where sewage samples tested positive for the virus, are covered in the compulsory testing notice.

A number of mobile specimen collection stations in various districts will be set up or reopened to provide free services for citizens subject to mandatory testing, the Government added.

For information and health advice on COVID-19, visit the Government's dedicated webpage.