Hong Kong's leader said she would not impose a mainland China-style hard lockdown as the city faces its worst coronavirus wave to date, even as she vowed no switch to living with Covid-19.

The comments came as hospitals began to buckle under the strain of rising infections with at least two medical facilities placing patients in beds outside their entrances, AFP reports.

“We have no plans whatsoever to impose a complete, wholesale lockdown,” Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam told reporters.

But she also rejected calls from some public health experts and business figures to switch to a mitigation strategy, saying zero-Covid remained her administration's goal.