Recovered Sabah cases continue to rise

State sees 49 more cases and new cluster in Sandakan

PUTRAJAYA: The Covid-19 situation in Sabah continues to intensify, with 49 more cases and a new cluster reported in Sandakan.

This comes amid the Sabah state election, which is currently in its campaigning period and is set to go to polls on Saturday.

Health director-general Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said the 49 cases in Sabah were out of the 57 new cases recorded in the country yesterday.

Two others were from Kedah and Selangor, while six others were imported cases.

On the new cluster – dubbed the Quarters cluster – Dr Noor Hisham said it was detected in the Tongod district in Sandakan and five cases were linked to it so far.

“The Quarters cluster was identified following a Covid-19 screening which was conducted around the Tongod district, after results on the antigen RTK (rapid test kits) found a healthcare worker positive on Sept 4.

“The worker, however, tested negative on the RT-PCR (reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction) test.

“The screening around Tongod district was initiated on Sept 6 and involved locals in the area, including healthcare workers from the same clinic.

“Five positive cases have been detected, and all are Malaysians. They are all asymptomatic and have been admitted to the Duchess of Kent Hospital in Sandakan,” said Dr Noor Hisham in a statement yesterday.

The source of the infection is still being investigated.

With the addition of the Quarters cluster, seven out of the country’s 14 active clusters are in Sabah.

Malaysia’s current biggest and most active cluster, the Benteng Lahad Datu (LD) cluster, has reported five more cases bringing its total to 583 cases.

The cluster mainly involves inmates at the Lahad Datu police headquarters’ lock-up and the Tawau prison.

The Pulau cluster saw 14 new cases bringing its total to 29.

The cluster started with a 68-year-old woman who was found unconscious at home and taken to the Kunak hospital.

She was later referred to the Tawau hospital and tested positive for Covid-19 on Sept 13. The infection then spread among her family members.

The Selamat cluster reported 12 new cases, which means cumulatively it has 19 cases.

The index case for this cluster is a 32-year-old woman who was found positive for Covid-19 on Sept 14 at the Tawau Hospital.