The century-old custom, featuring a 67-meter dragon adorned with burning incense, traditionally involves more than 300 residents of Tai Hang village near Causeway Bay.

Chan Tak-fai, commander-in-charge of the dance, said yesterday that the government refused to grant an exemption to hold the dance despite proposals to divide Tai Hang into seven zones and cap the total number of participants and spectators at 3,000.

"All participants would have had to use the LeaveHomeSafe app and needed to get at least three Covid-19 vaccine doses to take part or watch," said Chan, who has held the post for 40 years.

Workers would have been posted in each of the zones to direct the flow of people and prevent overcrowding.

Chan found it ironic that a dance that began as a ritual to ward off disease was canceled due to the epidemic .

"Many people called us and asked how come the dance - supposedly for warding off an epidemic and killing germs - did not get approved," he said.

He expressed disappointment over the decision, saying there were no discussions or negotiations.

"Many villagers are disappointed too," he said. "We had ordered the materials for the dragon as early as March to make sure it would be completed on time."

The team had already finished making the body, while the 48-kilogram head had not been completed.

The organizer of the Pok Fu Lam Village fire dragon dance, scheduled for the Mid-Autumn Festival on September 10, also said no green light has come yet.

Alun Siu Kwan-lun said it would have been difficult to seal off the village and its public areas to host the parade.

The Tai Hang cancellation comes after a 500-participant cap was placed on major sporting events, leading to the cancellation of a 10-kilometer run and uncertainty plaguing the upcoming New World Harbor Race and the Standard Chartered Marathon.

It also came as the three-day 2nd International Property Management and Procurement Expo started at the Convention and Exhibition Centre, the first exhibition to allow visitors holding an amber vaccine code to enter.

But the organizer, Comasia, said no holders of amber codes - put in force last Thursday for people to take past in business-to-business conventions and exhibitions - have visited yet.

But it said the sudden policy change left it with few opportunities to do much in the way of overseas promotions.