To date, Hong Kong, which is home to more than 7 million people, has fewer than 170 cases and four deaths, while other countries and cities have reported hundreds, even thousands, of infections.
This has been achieved through intense efforts, including having millions work at home and exercising social distancing. The biggest visual sign of these efforts has been the almost complete ubiquity of face masks, which began appearing soon after the first coronavirus cases were reported in China, (despite a technical ban on them related to last year's anti-government protests), and soon were seen everywhere, sparking concerns about shortages and long queues at pharmacies that did stock them.
