Lee: Auxiliary cop is index case of Pujut Satu Cluster
MIRI: The Pujut Satu Cluster which was detected on Saturday is a workplace cluster involving an auxiliary police personnel who works at the Sarawak Energy Berhad office at Jalan Sesco in Pujut 1 area here, said Datuk Lee Kim Shin.
Lee, who is the minister incharge of Miri Division Disaster Management Committee (MDDMC), said the index case was detected through contact tracing.
According to him, the individual was a close contact to a Covid-19 case detected in Sibu Hospital and was confirmed positive on March 29. He had begun experiencing symptoms such as cough and fever on March 20.
“As for the cluster that is linked to this index case, failure to practise physical distancing among family members and coworkers could be the factor that led to the spread of the virus,” Lee in a statement.
Meanwhile, Lee who earlier chaired a MDDMC meeting, said the occurrence of Covid-19 cases in the division are linked to two factors, namely infection at the workplace and at home.
“We believe that infection at the workplace happened when colleagues opened their face masks during meal time. Those who infected their other colleagues could be those who exhibited symptoms but insisted on going to work.
“The other factor, which is infection at home, happened when those with symptoms did not seek treatment immediately at health facility and those who were required to do selfquarantine at home did not follow the strict standard operating procedure (SOP),” he said.
In view of the worsening
The other factor, which is infection at home, happened when those with symptoms did not seek treatment immediately at the health facility and those who were required to do self-quarantine at home did not follow the strict standard operating procedure (SOP).
Datuk Lee Kim Shim
Covid-19 situation in the division, Lee said MDDMC has decided to issue guidelines for home quarantine and Covid19 preventive measures at the workplace.
For home quarantine, he said individuals must remain at their own residence and not leave the house unless for an emergency; practise physical distancing with other family members; wear face mask at all times; have separate meals from other family members; not receive any visitors during the quarantine period; and to inform the nearest health facility if they experience any symptoms or discomfort during the self-quarantine period.
For Covid-19 preventive measures at the workplace, Lee said health declaration must be done on a daily basis before starting work; workers must scan the MySejahtera QR code, and have their body temperature scanned and recorded; practise strict physical distancing; and avoid gathering during work or meal time.
He said employers must prepare hand sanitiser for the workers while those who experience discomfort or have symptoms, or with body temperature of more than 37.5 degrees Celsius, must not enter the premises but seek immediate treatment at nearest health facility.
Sanitisation must also be carried out on a daily basis, he added.
Similarly, Lee said students who are returning to school for physical classes must be vigilant and adhere strictly to the SOP drawn up by the district education department.
He advised parents not to send their children to school if they are experiencing fever, cough, sore throat, breathing difficulty or loss of smell, but to send them to the nearest health facility.
“Similarly, if any family member of the student is identified as a close contact to a positive case, parents must not send their children to school but to inform their respective school management and wait until the rt-PCR result (of the close contact) comes out negative,” said Lee.