Hong Kong - Hong Kong's health authority will be able to quarantine patients suspected of contracting an unidentified illness in the central Chinese city of Wuhan, in line with a law change announced by Hong Kong's Chief Executive Carrie Lam on Tuesday.

In a bid to control the spread of the mystery illness, Hong Kong is already checking the temperatures of travellers returning from China at airports, railway stations and ports.

People arriving with symptoms such as fever, cough or cold could now be quarantined as a protective measure.

Lam's new preventive measures mean schools and workplaces must comply with more intensive cleaning operations and share information with government departments.

"Currently no serious pneumonia case related to Wuhan has been detected in Hong Kong, but the cluster of viral pneumonia cases in Wuhan can be regarded as a 'Novel Infectious Disease of Public Health Significance,'" food and health secretary Sophia Chan said in a statement.