Justice Served in Toilet Paper Heist

 

Today there were 24 new coronavirus cases, and tonight there are lockdowns in several buildings near Ursus Fitness in Sai Ying Pun where the latest cluster has evolved to 109 so far. If the gym cluster continues to expand, Hong Kong could be in its fifth wave.

But way back when the pandemic first began last January, there was an unfounded rumour that the border between China and Hong Kong would shut down and what did people really need? Toilet paper!

Then the hoarding began, with people fighting over bog rolls in the supermarket and soon retail establishments had to set a limit of two packs per person.

Toilet paper were stolen from this Wellcome

And then the heist happened -- at 6am on February 17 last year, 600 rolls of Virjoy toilet paper worth HK$1,695 (US$217) were stolen at knife point by three masked men at at Wellcome supermarket in Mongkok.

The delivery driver who was threatened with the knife later called the police, who managed to recover all 600 rolls the same day in two locations near the supermarket. The three men were arrested soon after.

Fast forward to March 11, and the trio were sentenced to 40 months in jail each for robbery. 

Warehouse worker Ho Chi-leung, 27, transport worker Lee Yan-to, 34, and steel bender Lee Yip-tong, 30, pleaded guilty and in mitigation expressed remorse. Ho apologized to the delivery man.

The stolen goods were quickly recovered by police

While their defense lawyers said the robbery was not elaborate and did not involve valuables, and the stolen goods were recovered, Deputy District Judge David Cheung Chi-wai said the stolen goods could not be valued by their nominal price because of the circumstances at the time.

The judge also noted the three worked together and were equipped, which suggested they had a plan, albeit a simple one.

Justice served.

Picture of the Day: Pandemic Sourdough

A delicious sourdough with flax seeds and chia seeds

When the coronavirus pandemic erupted in Hong Kong in late January, supermarkets ran out of toilet paper, cleaning supplies, rice... and flour.

Amateur bakers started making sourdough, a pretty time-consuming recipe that takes around 30 hours as the dough has to be stretched and folded every half hour for a few hours before it is baked in the oven.

A beautiful-looking loaf with heft too!

I'm very lucky to have two friends who have decent-sized ovens at home and each have made a sourdough for me recently.

One is a busy mother of two who bakes when she has time or uses it as an opportunity to de-stress, the other is a hotel general manager, who has a very quiet hotel these days and now has more time to attend to his hobby.

He takes meticulous notes of the process like a methodical scientist and takes pictures. Every person who has received his loaf has praised how delicious it is.

Earlier this week I received an organic cranberry sourdough loaf from him and it was very professional looking, even using a banneton, the ridged clay-pot to get the circular pattern on the top.

When I get bread I slice it up and then put half the loaf in the freezer and the other half to eat in the next few days.

Inside is moist with lots of cranberries

I haven't eaten so much bread till this pandemic, but as a comfort food, these homemade loaves are like a warm hug from thoughtful friends.

Welcome to Our World

Shelves completely stripped bare in a supermarket in the UK

It is shocking amazing that US President Donald Trump did not test positive for the coronavirus after he was exposed to at least two people in the last few days who had tested positive.

He must be gloating...

In the meantime the rest of the world (outside of China, Hong Kong, Singapore and Taiwan) is now experiencing what we did back in late January: events being cancelled, panic-buying in supermarkets, restaurants, hotels and shops empty, and everyone generally paranoid and terrified.

This man has hoarded a lot of cleaning products for sale

Welcome to our world, folks.

What they thought was only happening in Asia has now spread all over the world.

My mom told me of people (mostly men) rushing to the supermarket and buying up everything, and especially rice, pasta, toilet paper... there is no hand sanitizer left.

I read two articles about people who bought up all kinds of cleaning products to sell for several times the price on Amazon in order to make money out of people's desperation. These hoarders didn't think they were doing anything morally wrong -- for them it is a livelihood and a way to make quick money. Needless to say Amazon has shut down their accounts and many others doing similar things. Now they're stuck with tons of bottles of hand sanitizers and masks when frontline medical staff really need them...

In 2011 Japanese snapped up salt to protect from radiation

My cousin in Canada is trying to make sense of the toilet paper panic-buying. I explain to him that in Hong Kong, there were rumours on social media that the border between the city and China would shut and there would be no more toilet paper left, and that with the coronavirus, the factories wouldn't be starting up after Chinese New Year so it was hinted they should stock up now.

He reminded me of when the Japanese bought out all the salt following the 2011 Fukushima nuclear power plant disaster caused by the earthquake and tsunami. They thought the salt would protect them against radiation exposure...

Humans can be very irrational at times.

While over 90 percent of people in Hong Kong are wearing masks, it is worrying to see pictures of expats congregating in a small area on a Friday night. There's a picture going around that a journalist took on Peel Street in Soho, crammed with expats having drinks.

A WSJ reporter's pic of Peel Street on Friday night

A lot of non-Chinese in Hong Kong seem to think the coronavirus has nothing to do with them, or that they have listened to the advice of non-Hong Kong health experts who say if you're not sick you shouldn't wear a mask. But the coronavirus is different -- you can be asymptomatic and pass on the virus to others.

Isn't it better to take further precautions and protect everyone from getting the coronavirus including yourself?

Hong Kong has now issued a red travel alert to the United States, Britain and Ireland, with those people arriving from those countries needing to self quarantine for 14 days.

It's best just to stay where you are now...

Picture of the Day: Oversupply of Toilet Paper

Is that enough toilet paper for you? If not there's more behind this stack

A few weeks ago everyone was laughing at Hongkongers for blindly believing in a rumour on social media there would be no more toilet paper left and scrambled to buy every last bog roll in the city.

Then it was Singapore's turn to go panic buying, and now Japan, and Italy.

Shelves of toilet paper were cleared out in Japan

Here's a picture of the shelves in a Japanese supermarket yesterday.

Thankfully things are pretty much back to normal now in Hong Kong. Tonight I wandered into a large supermarket in my neighbourhood and was pretty overwhelming to see the stacks of toilet paper. There was even more in another aisle.

Guess Hong Kong is the trendsetter when it comes to panic buying?

The Benefits and Pitfalls of Teaching Online

One teacher in his classroom, teaching his students from his laptop

This academic year has been a tough one for students, with the anti-government protests disrupting classes for a few months, and then now the coronavirus. I feel especially for those transitioning from primary to secondary school, and those in university, who are struggling to learn under these stressful circumstances.

So far schools are closed until March 16, but it could be extended further...

My cousin who is a primary teacher on Hong Kong Island has had it pretty good -- he just creates assignments online and then his students have to complete them. I asked him if he had to mark their work and he said, well they can check the answers in the answer key... how are students supposed to learn from that?!

This has been a tough academic year for students in HK

I'm glad I'm not a student in his class...

Then I have a friend in her early 50s at the gym who teaches English at one of the universities and she was stressed out learning how to use the software to teach her students online in real time. She has over 30 years' experience teaching in a classroom, but not from a screen from her laptop.

She had to go to the university to teach her classes online because she doesn't have a good enough internet connection at home, and there are IT guys to help her out if she has a technical problem.

However, she found it frustrating that students wouldn't turn on their cameras on their laptops so that she could see all of them or get any reaction from them because they were too shy to ask questions or didn't care to.

It's hard for her to know if they understood what she was teaching them because they hardly gave her any feedback either by voice or in the chat box.

But another post secondary instructor at another local university told me getting feedback online can work if you know everyone in the class and gently tease the students to show themselves online.

Learning and teaching online has had its benefits and pitfalls

"Some of them are embarrassed that their flat looks messy so I tell them they can put up a virtual background behind them. I do that too," she told me, saying she likes to put up pictures of space with an alien poking its head behind her.

"During one of our classes, one of the student's mom popped her head into his room and demanded that he go downstairs right away to pick up some toilet paper! she said in Cantonese much to his embarrassment," she recalled. Everyone in the class laughed.

After teaching them for a bit she breaks them up into groups and as the instructor she can "sit in" on each group without them knowing she is here. She said that they are all talking among themselves excitedly because they haven't seen each other for a while and were craving conversations with their peers.
 However she admits teaching online only works for certain courses, and so she needs to have a backup plan just in case not everyone is on the same page because they were unable to download a software program so that ended that class prematurely.

Teaching online has become an interesting forced experiment to see if the teachers are able to use the technology to teach, and if the students are able to absorb their lessons without having to be in a physical classroom.

Perhaps schools and universities will look into further developing this area of teaching (to gain more income) depending on which courses, as some are more effective online than others. And for teachers, it's been an experience to be in front of the laptop and being "camera ready" as we say in the TV business -- looking professional -- at least from the waist up.

Life Behind a Mask

Putting on a mask is a daily ritual just before going outside

Everyday just before stepping out the door, there is one more extra step to do -- don a mask.

Take out a fresh mask, fold the top part in half, press firmly on the bridge of the nose and then loop it around the ears, then pull the mask down to cover the chin.

It's been almost a month now since health experts warned of the coronavirus spreading to Hong Kong and imploring the public to wear surgical masks when out in public.

Almost everyone wears a mask in Hong Kong these days

What's it like? It's stifling in a mask, hard to breathe. I have to remind myself to take deep breaths otherwise you can work your body into a stressed state.

Practically everyone else is wearing a mask too, all of us concerned about the situation and hoping not to be swept up in the epidemic. There are now 70 cases in Hong Kong, over 77,000 worldwide.

Everyone is washing their hands more often these days. Washrooms in our office have illustrated signs at the sinks showing you how to wash your hands thoroughly. People stand there lathering up their hands longer and longer like a competition to see whose hands are cleaner.

Sadly, the coronavirus is now an excuse to overuse paper towels and tissues in the name of hygiene. The environment has had to take a backseat now and for how much longer?

A lot of people are buying more groceries and cooking at home, not wanting to risk going to a restaurant these days. Many don't even go to wet markets even for a minute, thinking they aren't as clean as supermarkets. Yes they can be crowded places, but so can supermarkets when everyone is fighting over toilet paper...!

There are signs explaining how to wash your hands properly

Speaking of which, some toilet paper is back on the shelves and tissue paper, but in my neighbourhood there's no paper towels. There are wet wipes, and pharmacies are selling small bottles of hand sanitizers at HK$45 (US$5.78) which is on the expensive side. Not many takers.

Many people who use the gym facilities in their apartment buildings aren't allowed to in the name of hygiene, while some people who belong to private gyms have suspended their memberships in the name of hygiene. But exercise is the best way to maintain good health especially during this time, which is why some people are running or walking outdoors -- with masks on in most cases.

It is believed the next few weeks are going to be critical to see if the coronavirus can be contained or not, but seeing how it has spread in Japan and South Korea, and strangely in Iran too, it doesn't look like this epidemic will be tamed anytime soon.

Supermarkets are busy with people buying lots of groceries

It's interesting that Chinese state media have warned Japan to clean up its coronavirus situation (over 100 cases, plus 600 from the Diamond Princess cruise ship) as President Xi Jinping will visit the country soon. And where did this epidemic originate from?

Meanwhile postmen from Hong Kong Post are getting kudos from residents who are finally receiving their packages of masks they had ordered from overseas. One was surprised to get a knock on the door on a Sunday to get their package, while others were so overjoyed on receiving their package of masks that they wept, and one even gave some masks to the postman.

Who knew masks would be so... special?

Coronavirus Numbers Keep Rising

The roads pretty much everywhere in Beijing are empty these days

The Chinese government is desperately trying to put a positive spin on how it is handling the epidemic. It has sent out confident messages that the country is at war to beat the coronavirus and that the battle will be won.

But the story on the ground couldn't be further from the truth. For example, most of the Chinese capital is deserted with everyone at home. My Beijing friends report staying at home with their families for the past 22 days, only going outside to fetch food delivered to them.

Some people only go outside to collect food deliveries

Many people are terrified because they don't have much knowledge or information about the coronavirus, and some don't have enough protective gear like masks. A Beijing friend told me about an elderly couple who went out to buy fruits and then came back home infected. 

Another talked about how sons or daughters take care of their sick parents to the hospital and then came home, didn't wash their clothes right away and then they were infected or they spread the virus to other people in the family.

Wonder if these stories were counted in the official statistics?

China is anxious to show its number of cases are declining, especially in Wuhan, but that hope is now thrown out the window with news that over 500 people are infected with the coronavirus in five prisons in three provinces which has bumped up the total of confirmed cases to over 80,000.

The numbers of prisoners infected in China are worrying

"With a heavy heart and sense of responsibility, I am reporting to you that as of February 20, five prisons in Hubei, Shandong and Zhejiang have reported infections among their populations," He Ping, head of the ministry's Bureau of Prison Administration, said in Beijing.

More than half the cases were in Hubei province, the epicenter of the epidemic, 207 cases in Shandong, and 34 in Zhejiang.

Either the prisoners were initially infected by a new prisoner who already had the virus, or from possible visits from family? Even if someone was supposedly healthy when they were initially imprisoned, they may have developed symptoms later. And then Chinese prisons are known for being overcrowded, which make them a hotbed for transmitting all kinds of things...

So now prisons have been told to be more vigilant about monitoring prisoners' health for the coronavirus.

Already heads have rolled for the outbreak of infections. In Shandong province, Xie Weijun, Communist Party secretary of the province's Department of Justice, and seven prison officials were sacked for mismanagement of the infections. And in Zhejiang province, the provincial government said two prison officials were fired as well.

There were already unconfirmed reports of infections in prisons last weekend, and again people were punished for posting these stories online.

Passengers are slowly disembarking from Diamond Princess

Another friend I had lunch with today in Hong Kong has a lot of mainland clients and has an office in Shenzhen. He says he hasn't heard from his clients at all, while his staff are also stuck at home, though they are expected to be back at work next week.

So for now he hasn't had much to do and his superior who used to be so busy is now asking a lot of questions now that she has time on her hands...

Meanwhile in South Korea the numbers of confirmed cases have doubled to 208 today, as well as one casualty. Many of the cases are linked to Shincheonji Church of Jesus in Daegu, which is really a doomsday cult that has 200,000 followers in the country.

Did their leader know this infection might be the end of them?

Japan is getting flack for how it has dealt with the Diamond Princess cruise ship passengers. Was cooping them up on the ship the best thing to do? Or did it quickly result in hundreds of cases? It seems some among the crew could be infected.

Back in Hong Kong, my neighbourhood supermarkets and shops are having stocks of tissue paper again and wet wipes, but no toilet paper... I was tempted to buy a giant package of wet wipes when I stopped to think -- wait a second do I really need that much?

At lunchtime across from my office in Causeway Bay there was a massive line in front of a cosmetics shop called Colour Mix where they were all waiting for masks to be sold (See the above video). It seems people refuse to pay high prices and are willing to wait in line... or maybe because they have nothing else to do?

Toilet Paper Worth Robbing

Mongkok police investigate the robbery of 600 rolls of toilet paper

Hongkongers are still obsessed with having enough toilet paper, so much so that there was an armed robbery for the bog roll at around 6am this morning.

Three masked men with two knives held up a delivery man outside a Wellcome store in Mongkok, Kowloon, and stole 600 rolls in 50 packs worth about HK$1,600 (US$206).

Three men armed with two knives threatened Wellcome staff

The heist was so unusual that it made international headlines in The Guardian and the BBC.

By lunchtime two men were arrested in a Mongkok guest house where they kept the toilet paper, and police are still looking for the three people who committed the robbery this morning.

Wellcome said its staff were threatened and robbed while they were unloading a delivery of toilet paper from a truck at the store. No one was injured.

"This is a senseless act and we are shocked," said a spokeswoman from the supermarket chain. She added all Wellcome stores had enough supply of toilet paper and more coming in, and urged customers not to panic buy.

"A temporary shortage was caused by a sudden and unusual surge in demand. We will do our utmost to speed up replenishment in our stores until the situation stabilizes," she said.

This is what Hong Kong has come to -- holding up delivery men with knives to get a stash of toilet paper... it's absolutely ridiculous and sad.

I went out for dinner with a friend tonight in Central and again, only five tables occupied, about 10 people in total. The restaurant industry in Hong Kong is plunging very quickly with no end in sight.

Someone has been hoarding a lot of toilet paper...

On a related note, I found out belatedly that a fine dining restaurant in Sheung Wan is closing today after months of negotiations with the landlord went nowhere. I walked by the restaurant and it was just barely half full. Other bars and restaurants the same, though it is a Monday, a slow day.

Nevertheless, we leave you with one more toilet paper anecdote overheard in a restaurant in Wan Chai. The parents were so desperate for the bog roll that their kids studying in either the UK or Australia sent them a pack of toilet paper via courier.

True story.

Toilet Paper, Masks and Rice are Prized Commodities

Two women clutching their prized toilet paper packs in Hong Kong

Last night the shelves that were supposed to stock toilet paper were bare in a large supermarket in my neighbourhood. It was completely cleared out, and after seeing this in several stores over several days, it's worrying.

It's a sad indictment of the Hong Kong government when people are desperately searching for toilet paper even though supermarkets and distributors have tried to reassure the public there is more than enough bog roll to go around.

The largest supermarket in the district is empty of toilet paper

This morning I was in Central on my way to the gym when I spied someone carrying a pack of toilet paper, and she was coming from a supermarket nearby. I decided to check it out as I had never been to Food Le Parc, a bizarre name for a supermarket owned by tycoon Li Ka-shing.

And bingo! There were several shoppers there each with two packs of toilet paper in each of their carts. The price was more expensive than usual, but heck -- you need it, right?

I also got a roll of paper towels, as I was truly running out.

Afterwards, I clutched my toilet paper pack close to my chest and carried it to the gym where I stored it in my locker. Luckily I didn't get any strange looks.

Anthony Lam says there is more than enough rice for a month

However when I came back to Kennedy Town and went up the escalator to the wet market, one woman going down spied my prized possession and asked if I had gotten it from the pharmacy. "I got it in Central," I replied, much to her surprise.

Meanwhile it seems rice is still also a precious commodity, and Anthony Lam Sai-ho, a rice importer and member of the Trade and Industry Department's Customer Liaison Group for Rice, tried to tell the public there were no need to panic when it came to enough rice in the city.

He said the government's rice reserve as well as the industry's own stockpile would be enough to meet the city's demand for more than a month. But even if Hong Kong needed more rice, it could be imported within 10 days or less, as most of it is sourced from Thailand and Vietnam.

Most of Hong Kong's rice comes from Thailand and Vietnam

Lam said the city's 229 importers were required to set aside 17 percent of their monthly import for reserve, which at the end of January was at 13,000 tonnes, enough for about 15 days. And then there is another stockpile by importers that was about 14,000 tonnes, again enough for more than two weeks' consumption.

However, people are still stockpiling on rice, emptying shelves of the staple faster than shop staff can restock them.





My relatives who came back from northern Japan managed to secure enough masks for their family of three for three months. They scoured every pharmacy, supermarket and convenience shop for them. In some places they could only buy packs of three, in other places they managed to buy boxes of 60.

A lot of people are shopping for masks in Japan

On their flight back to Hong Kong this morning, they noticed elderly passengers had lots of luggage and assumed they too were hunting for masks, a more important concern than seeing the sights. They also saw many young families from Hong Kong who were also on holiday since school is still out until mid March.

One more thing about toilet paper -- the Consumer Council has also advised people not to hoard toilet paper, and that they should not store their numerous packs of toilet paper in the bathroom where it is more humid and germs often thrive. Better to stick them in a dry ventilated space.

People won't be needing to buy toilet paper for a while... right?



 

Coronavirus Dominates Dinner Conversations

Hong Kong commuters disembark from the MTR train, all wearing masks

At the few gatherings I have been to, the talk around the table is the coronavirus, now called COVID-19, and how it has impacted our daily lives.

Many people have been stuck working at home, some more productive than if they were in the office, while others still continue to go in to work.

Today there seemed to be more people out and about -- at around 6.15pm, the Central MTR station was relatively busy, with lots of people coming into the station during rush hour.

Some resort to wearing swimming goggles and tear gas masks

I went to a restaurant in Central that opened recently, and there was a long queue outside the door. People were encouraged to eat outside and one group even had a bottle of wine complete with wine glasses as they ate pizza.

Inside one person at our table wondered if the Hong Kong Rugby Sevens would still be on -- we found out later it is now postponed to October -- and would an annual food festival called Taste of Hong Kong would still go ahead in March? (we don't think so).

Another person observed how hiking up Victoria Peak is now very popular, people wanting some fresh air and exercise, but when it came to the cinema, they now take your temperature and it is mandatory to wear a mask in the theatre.

On Sunday I went to see The Farewell on the big screen and while temperatures were not taken, almost all of us wore masks as we watched the film. Strange, but the new normal.

Lining up for either masks or toilet paper or both

The procurement of masks was also a hot topic, how they were completely overpriced, and getting used to wearing them on a daily basis. Some even wear masks inside the office, probably to take extra precautions, but report their glasses keep fogging up, and having to readjust masks when they smile.

It's definitely a strange new world we're living in -- and for how long? That's what we all want to know.

Worldwide there are now over 45,100 confirmed cases, 1,115 deaths, and over 4,700 recovered. The number of deaths have now surpassed 774 people for SARS in 2002-03, so it seems to be more contagious and deadly too.

In Hong Kong today we recorded our 50th patient confirmed with COVID-19, about 10 of the cases are related to a hot pot dinner on January 26 with two relatives who came down from the mainland.

Some lucky shoppers stocking up on toilet paper

Meanwhile the hunt for reasonably priced masks continues and the massive line for toilet paper. I have seen a few people carrying their prized toilet packs on the MTR or a bag of rice.

It's crazy that masks, rice and toilet paper are such highly-prized items. We are all buckling down for war and collecting whatever provisions we can get. But who are we fighting? The coronavirus or each other?

We've had hardly any help from the Hong Kong government, and not a peep! Not one word from the Liaison Office and the new leader there, Luo Huining.

Perhaps he's hiding in a basement somewhere a la Parasite and hoarding all our masks, toilet paper and rice...?

The Hunt for Masks Continues

People checking out prices of masks at pharmacies in Causeway Bay

 

Last night after work I saw people standing around pharmacy shops nearby and went to take a look.

There were boxes and boxes of masks, some from Indonesia, some from Japan and Korea.

The prices? The most expensive ones I saw were HK$498 for a box of 50 masks. It should really cost around HK$80.

Children's masks were more expensive than adult ones

Another shop had face masks for children that were made in Thailand. They cost a whopping HK$528 for 50 masks.

These pharmacies used to gouge mainlanders for milk powder, vitamins, shampoo, toothpaste and so on. Now they were gouging Hongkongers.

Oh they also had packs of 10 masks for HK$80. I did buy a pack, just so that I would feel less anxious about not having enough masks.

Then this morning my hairdresser told me not to buy masks in pharmacies because they could be fake or from China. She suggested that the quality was not very good, supposedly for use only in China.

The paranoia that has gripped this city is too much, but the government has done nothing or hardly enough to quell people's fears.

Singaporean PM tries to tell residents not to panic buy

At least Singaporean leader Lee Hsien Loong posted a video of himself trying to reassure his fellow citizens that the city state has enough supplies of everything, medical staff are prepared, and that everyone should do their part in staying free of the coronavirus by washing hands often and not going to crowded places.

He appealed to people not to worry and stock up on cup noodles and toilet paper, which is what happened yesterday with panic buying similar to Hong Kong.

By the way the shelves still haven't been restocked yet, though some stores now finally have packs of rice again...

As for Hong Kong forcing people to self quarantine, it's a complete joke. Travelers who have arrived into the city are not escorted back to their homes, even taking public transport to get back and potentially infecting others along the way.

Medical masks above, beauty masks below

There is no enforcement of their quarantine, just random phone calls to see if they are home, no tracking equipment they have to wear.

Meanwhile the government is scrambling to find volunteers (Scouts anyone?) to help check on these quarantined people and handing meals to them. Not thought out through at all.  Chief Secretary Matthew Cheung Kin-chung appealed to civil servants and medical students... now he's down to the Scouts... wonder who offered.

The coronavirus is on track to have more deaths than SARS in 2002-2003 because of the sheer numbers of people infected. There is a high recovery rate, but we are seeing higher numbers of cases and deaths each day. Now it is at just under 35,000 confirmed cases, 724 deaths and over 2,100 recovered.

Hong Kong Declares Coronavirus Outbreak

Healthcare workers continue their strike demanding all borders closed

It was declared today that Hong Kong now has a community outbreak of the coronavirus by top microbiologist professor Yuen Kwok-yung of the University of Hong Kong.

The city now has 21 cases, eight of them are people who did not travel to China recently, which means a local outbreak has occurred and human-to-human transmission occurring. In the past two days, six people have been diagnosed with the coronavirus, five of whom had not left Hong Kong recently.

Yuen Kwok-yung declared HK has community outbreak

Yuen warned that more needed to be done to minimize the spread of the virus, including shutting down borders, but up until now Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor has refused to close the remaining borders that are still open.

"The local transmission chain has begun, and if we do nothing to control it, Hong Kong will become like some mainland city that has suffered lots of cases," Yuen warned.

Starting from Saturday, all travelers who have come from the mainland must quarantine themselves for 14 days, though the government has yet to clarify exactly how this will work. It is hoped that this will stop the spread of the virus in the city.

"Many people blamed me earlier for exaggerating [the situation] previously, but what I said was based on scientific facts, not personal feelings," Yuen said, referring to previous remarks about transmission.

"Once we have a bigger outbreak, even if you do not close the border, the city will be isolated [by others]. It would be too late then."

Is Carrie listening?

Hong Kong traders assured the public there is enough food!

Today my gweilo colleagues were wondering what all the fuss was about in scrambling for toilet paper. This evening I checked my neighbourhood supermarket and the shelves are still bare. People have become so paranoid and irrational that Hong Kong traders had to hold a press conference today to reassure the public there is enough toilet paper and food to keep us going.

"There is absolutely no need to panic buy. We have always worked to ensure a stable supply of food and all these years, throughout all sorts of big events, we have never had a shortage," said Thomas Ng Wing-yan, chairman of the Hong Kong Food Council.

When it comes to rice, Kenneth Chan Kin-nin, chairman of the Rice Merchants' Association of Hong Kong said there was plenty of rice in stock.

"The supply of rice is regulated by the government and we still have 13,000 tonnes in storage, which are yet to be used," he said. Ninety percent of the city's rice supply comes from Thailand and Vietnam, and the association is in close contact with the importers in the two countries.

Shelves are still bare where packs of toilet paper should be

The traders warned that the food supply would be cut off in truck drivers were subject to quarantine, as there weren't enough regular and back-up drivers to keep the shipments coming into Hong Kong. They agree with drivers having temperature checks and additional disinfection of truck wheels and containers.

So folks, no need to panic! Hong Kong has food! And eventually we will get toilet paper!

Panic Ensues in Hong Kong

The massive line of people in Kowloon Bay hoping to buy masks today

Is Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor really qualified to be Chief Executive?

Yesterday a company in Kowloon Bay announced on social media that it was selling 11,000 boxes of masks today and immediately people began lining up in front of the store in the afternoon, making the shop owner very distressed to see Hongkongers willing to wait in line overnight. Of course the line was massive.

Carrie Lam continues to stir confusion on wearing masks

Did Lam see this line with her own eyes? Did she try to procure more masks for the general public?

And then this afternoon I was out on an assignment in Olympian City when I saw a few elderly people carrying several packs of toilet paper. Was this a coincidence? Afterwards I went to the gym where one of the changing room attendants told me there was a run on toilet paper because a message circulated on social media saying China won't export anymore toilet paper, or that the suppliers are shut and won't replenish stock.

Then the changing room attendant asked her friend to go buy some toilet paper and everywhere she went in Central they were all cleaned out. I thought this was ridiculous and before I went home, I checked out three places -- the local pharmacy, a store that sells household cleaning supplies and the supermarket, and they were all sold out of toilet paper, and tissues.

Store shelves were cleaned out of... toilet paper today

Luckily I had just bought a pack of toilet paper a few days ago because I was running out, but this is insane.

Toilet paper manufacturers and supermarkets denied China will not export toilet paper, but everyone has lost trust in the government and so they are trying to fend for themselves... with rolls of toilet paper or tissues.

What's next after masks, rice and toilet paper?

The mis- and dis-information on social media has whipped everyone into a frenzy, freaking out about anything. When SARS happened 17 years ago, people were very worried, but not to the point where they went on panic buying sprees.

And now our fearless leader has realized that the coronavirus has infected local people who have not traveled in the last few weeks. Hong Kong now has 21 cases.

"It is worrying... the coming 14 days will be the key," Lam said today in a press conference.

How much toilet paper do you really need?

So she has announced people coming to Hong Kong from the mainland, regardless if they are local residents or not, must undergo 14 days of quarantine. However, she gave no specifics on where they would be quarantined and how it would be regulated. Even better, this latest measure doesn't start until midnight February 8.

Shouldn't have Lam enacted this measure ages ago? 

Oh and she actually apologized for giving people mixed messages about not wearing masks. Everyone from all political stripes criticized her for adding to the panic of finding masks, and ignoring the public's concerns.

Today she said she didn't mean to imply there was a complete ban on civil servants wearing masks, and that she only meant officials at public events could take the lead in reducing the use of masks when it's not necessary to wear them.

Some of Lam's ministers wore masks as they were "unwell"

Huh? We're supposed to wear them as soon as we step outside and are in public space, no?

At the press conference Lam again didn't wear a mask, where as some of the senior ministers sitting next to her did. When asked why, she replied:

"There are circumstances that the advice is to put on a surgical mask, including if that individual is unwell. I'm sorry to see that several of my colleagues are unwell, and of course that may be the case because they're in frequent interaction in a health setting," Lam explained.

Err, if they are not well, maybe they shouldn't be attending these press conferences to start with?

Lam and her administration continue to confuse and confound...

Defending the Indefensible

The scandal over the illegal structures at Cheng's homes continues to dog her

Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor continues to back her embattled Secretary for Justice Teresa Cheng Yeuk-wah. This time Lam claimed, speaking from experience, that it was possible to be "too neglectful, too busy and too devoted to public service to forget [one's] own private business".

Lam has been known to be so busy that she doesn't even know where to buy toilet paper late in the evening, but Cheng was not a civil servant before she bought three properties which have illegal structures in them.

How much longer can Carrie Lam defend Cheng?

Surely she would have known -- particularly the one she bought late last year -- and she would have known that she would need to deal with the problem as soon as possible, or at least give the appearance that she was hiring contractors to take down the illegal structures.

But no, Cheng was quiet about it and even survived two no-confidence motions on Monday thanks to support from pro-establishment lawmakers.

When Lam was answering questions in the Legislative Council, Lam was asked by People Power lawmaker Raymond Chan Chi-chuen if she believed Cheng lied to the bank about getting a mortgage without telling the financial institution about the illegal basement.

The chief executive replied she had no idea how to answer that as she had never bought a flat locally before. She has always lived in government housing, though her husband bought a flat in Zhongshan, Guangdong province.

Teresa Cheng's home (left) in Tuen Mun with illegal structures

It's mind boggling to find out that Lam, a career civil servant, doesn't own any property in Hong Kong. Which is why in some crazy way, she doesn't understand why lawmakers and many of the public are up in arms about Cheng being the justice secretary when she doesn't even follow the law with her own properties.

The most egregious offense is Cheng buying a flat last year and claiming she is a first-time homeowner when she has two other flats though bought through companies. But she was taking advantage of a loophole that we hope the government will close very soon.

Nevertheless, it is getting harder for Lam to defend the indefensible. There are so many calls for Cheng to step down but Lam and Cheng seem deaf to the growing chants...