Authorities in Taiwan have issued a travel alert for Macau and Hong Kong , warning residents to avoid non-essential trips to the two Special Administrative Regions (SARs).
They have also announced that any Taiwan residents who return to the island after visiting the two places must be quarantined at home for 14 days, according to the Central News Agency.
It was not immediately clear whether the authorities are planning any measures to curtail visitors to the island from Hong Kong, although some reports suggested SAR residents arriving in Taiwan would also be subject to some kind of quarantine.
The Taiwan Centers for Disease Control said that from February 6, “travellers with a history of travel to China, Hong Kong and Macau are required to be under home quarantine after entering Taiwan.”
“Nonetheless, travellers returning to Taiwan who were permitted to visit Hong Kong and Macau are required to conduct self-health management for 14 days. The entry of [mainland] Chinese residents will be suspended.”
The centre noted that several of Hong Kong’s coronavirus patients are believed to have caught the illness while in the SAR, indicating there is an invisible chain of infection.
