Face masks and nucleic acid test packages donated by the central government to help Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) fight the recent wave of COVID-19 have gone into nursing homes in the region to protect the elderly residents in the care homes from the virus.

Acknowledging the central government has done a lot to help Hong Kong fight latest flareup of COVID-19, a 90-year-old person living at a nursing home in Hong Kong told Phoenix TV that "I am very confident and enjoy a comfortable life at the nursing home." Phoenix TV doesn't provide the person's name. 

Besides, the Sheung Shui Slaughterhouse, the largest slaughterhouse and major supply of fresh meat in the region, resumed service on Monday. Trucks carrying live pigs from Hong Kong and the mainland went to the slaughterhouse as usual, and 38 slaughterers from the mainland also began their work to supplement the COVID-19-infected workforce at the slaughterhouse.

According to the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department in Hong Kong, the backup personnel from the mainland will be managed under a closed-loop system to lower their chances of being infected with the virus.

Local government said on Monday that the supply of fresh food from the mainland was stable and the overall wholesale price of vegetables has largely returned to the level of a normal day.

Meanwhile, according to Shanghai Customs, the Pudong Airport Customs inspected and released five batches of over 85,000 COVID-19 virus test kits being sent to Hong Kong since March 1 and ensured the rapid customs clearance of one million surgical masks for Hong Kong recently.

John Lee Ka-chiu, Chief Secretary for Administration in Hong Kong, said during an interview with China Daily that the central government's all-round support has bolstered the city's confidence in fighting the recent wave of COVID-19.

The HKSAR government should uphold its "dynamic zero infection" approach with a phased plan and take measures to reduce COVID-19 infections, severe cases and deaths, said Liang Wannian, head of the COVID-19 response expert panel under China's National Health Commission and leader of a mainland medical expert team in Hong Kong.

"With the reduction accomplished, we will then move toward the second and third goals," said Liang.

The current focus of Hong Kong's fight against the COVID-19 is to reduce the number of deaths in severe cases, especially for the elderly, he said.

Read more:

Mainland health experts visit Hong Kong's anti-epidemic community facilities

Official data showed that Hong Kong reported 25,150 new COVID-19 cases and 161 deaths on Monday, March 7.

Several teams of experts from the mainland and Hong Kong are currently conducting research on when the raging fifth wave of infections will peak, Liang said.

(With input from agencies)