|
2 |
The Hong Kong Observatory celebrates its 120th anniversary by laying
a time capsule at its headquarters in Tsim Sha Tsui. |
|
5 |
|
The Chief Executive attends the opening ceremony of the first
session of the 10th National People's Congress in Beijing;
he also attends the closing ceremony on March 18. |
 |
|
The 2003-04 Budget contains a series of measures aimed at
reducing expenditure and raising revenue to address the fiscal
deficit and as well as measures to boost the economy and promote
job and training opportunities. |
|
|
13 |
The Secretary for Health, Welfare and Food, Dr Yeoh Eng-kiong,
tells a press conference the authorities are investigating a respiratory
viral disease that is infecting patients and staff in the Prince
of Wales Hospital; the infection is subsequently named Severe Acute
Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), and proves to be deadly. |
|
19 |
The Department of Health says the source of the SARS outbreak is
believed to have been a visitor who stayed at a hotel in Kowloon
and infected a number of other visitors there as well as a local
resident who later was treated at the Prince of Wales Hospital. |
|
20 |
The Secretary for Health, Welfare and Food says the number of SARS
patients has risen to 165, and there have been six deaths. |
|
21 |
The Government introduces the second Voluntary Retirement Scheme
to facilitate the reduction in the size of civil service establishment
and thereby bring about long-term savings to the Government. Civil
servants in 229 designated grades with identified or anticipated
surplus staff are invited to apply to leave the service voluntarily
with compensation. |
|
22 |
The University of Hong Kong announces that a coronavirus is the
agent responsible for SARS. |
|
25 |
A high-level steering committee, chaired by the Chief Executive
and comprising relevant Principal Officials, is established to steer
the Government response to the SARS outbreak. |
|
27 |
With SARS spreading in the community, including hospitals and residential
buildings, the Chief Executive announces a series of emergency measures
to combat the disease, among them the temporary closure of schools.
Mr Tung calls it the worst contagious disease outbreak in 50 years. |
|
29 |
The Government requires all arriving passengers to fill out health
declaration forms at all Immigration boundary control points - air,
sea and land. |
|
31 |
A severe outbreak of SARS necessitates the temporary closure of
Block E of Amoy Gardens in Ngau Tau Kok; the residents are moved
the next day to holiday camps designated as isolation centres for
quarantine when preliminary evidence suggests that the sewerage
and drainage systems might have been linked to the vertical spread
of the disease in the block. |
