Covid-19: 1,683 new cases nationwide, no deaths

PETALING JAYA: The health ministry has reported 1,683 Covid-19 cases in the past 24 hours.

Health director-general Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said there were 1,214 recoveries, bringing the total number of those discharged to 75,244.

In a statement, Noor Hisham said with the 1,683 cases the total number of infections in the country to date is now 90,816.

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Meanwhile, there are no new deaths, with the death toll remaining at 432.

Selangor recorded the highest number of infections with 692 cases today, followed by Sabah (260) and Kuala Lumpur (197).

Of the 692 cases in Selangor, Noor Hisham said 346 of them were from Covid-19 screenings, while 175 were from existing clusters.

In Sabah and Kuala Lumpur, most of the cases were from existing clusters and close contact screenings in both states.

New cases recorded in other states: Negeri Semblilan (174), Melaka (140), Johor (77), Perak (65), Penang (37), Labuan (19), Pahang (six), Putrajaya (six), Kedah (four), Terengganu (four), Sarawak (one) and Kelantan (one).

A total of 313 infections were in prison and immigration detention centre clusters, namely the Jalan Harapan (235), Tembok (55), Tembok Gajah (12), Bakti (eight), Kepayan (two) and Seberang Perai (one) clusters.

There are currently 15,140 active cases with 106 patients receiving intensive care, of which 51 require respiratory assistance.

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Perlis was the only state that did not record any new cases today.

Out of the 1,683 cases today, only eight were imported cases.

The health ministry has detected six new Covid-19 clusters in the country over the last 24 hours.

In a statement, health director-general Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said they are known as the Lebuh construction site cluster in Selangor; Sugud cluster in Sabah; Jalan Tengah construction site cluster in Kuala Lumpur; Persiaran Heights cluster in Negeri Sembilan; as well as the Tembok Gajah and Utama Rini clusters in Johor.

The index case of the Lebuh construction site cluster in Sepang, Selangor, was detected on Dec 15 after screenings at a construction site. Of the 285 people screened in the cluster, 20 have tested positive so far.

The index case of the Sugud cluster, which is active in the Penampang and Papar districts in Sabah, was detected after a person tested positive during symptomatic individual screenings on Nov 26. Since then, 163 people have been screened, with 26 testing positive.

The Jalan Tengah construction site cluster in Lembah Pantai, Kuala Lumpur, was detected on Dec 3 after screenings at a construction site. Of the 245 screened in the cluster, 11 have tested positive so far.

Another workplace cluster, the Persiaran Heights cluster in Seremban, Negeri Sembilan, was detected after a person tested positive during symptomatic individual screenings on Dec 14. Sixty people have been screened since then, with 21 testing positive.

The Tembok Gajah cluster in Johor’s Kluang district was detected after an individual tested positive during symptomatic individual screenings on Dec 16. Of the 52 people screened in the cluster, 13 have tested positive so far.

The index case of the Utama Rini cluster in the districts of Johor Bahru, Kulai and Pontian in Johor was detected after an individual tested positive during symptomatic individual screenings on Dec 11. Since then, 100 people have been screened, with 22 testing positive.

Meanwhile, Noor Hisham said there were two clusters that ended today, the Parit Kassan cluster in Johor and the Kube cluster in Kelantan.

This brings the total number of active clusters being monitored nationwide to 197.

Noor Hisham added the clusters reporting the highest number of new cases in the last 24 hours were the Jalan Harapan prison cluster (235 cases), the Bina Muda construction site cluster (74 cases) and the Tembok cluster (55 cases).