Two employees of the U.S. Consulate General have tested positive for coronavirus during an ambush lockdown in the Mid-Levels district.

“We can confirm that the employees in question do not work in offices that interact with the public,” the U.S. Consulate General said in a statement on Monday. The office is closed for disinfection and contact tracing is completed, it noted.

The embassy stressed that its staff have complied with the government’s pandemic control rules, as the two cases have triggered concerns that diplomatic immunity enjoyed by foreign diplomats may pose a loophole. “Since the start of the pandemic, we have abided by all Hong Kong government requirements for the arrival, testing, and quarantine of all diplomatic personnel and their family members,” it added.

The two cases were found after the authorities tested over 3,400 people in the middle-class district over the weekend. The city faces a fifth wave of outbreak as a super-spreading cluster at a gym in Sai Ying Pun continues to grow.

Any preliminary positive infections will be handled seriously and must undergo quarantine, said Sophia Chan, Secretary for Food and Health, when asked about the two consular staff in a press briefing on Monday. Authorities will also trace close contacts of any patient as soon as possible and place them under quarantine, she added.

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