The three deaths were of Malaysians between the ages of 51 and 61. They died in hospital in Tawau, Kota Kinabalu and Semporna. All three had existing medical conditions.

Of the new cases reported today, Sabah had the most cases (277), followed by Selangor (44) and Kedah (27).

All the new cases were local transmissions, except for a Malaysian and foreigner who returned from the Philippines.

Most of the Sabah cases were detected from close-contact screenings (113) while the newly identified Highway cluster recorded 15 cases.

A total of 118 cases were detected in other Covid-19 screenings, while the remaining 31 cases were recorded from other active clusters in the state.

Thirteen cases in Selangor were detected from close-contact screenings while six others were individuals who returned from Sabah recently.

The remaining 25 cases were detected from active clusters in the state, including the new Utama, Bah Manggis, Tasik and Simera clusters.

Sarawak, Kuala Lumpur, Penang, Johor, Perak, Labuan, Melaka and Putrajaya all reported less than 10 cases each.

Commenting on the situation at Hospital Queen Elizabeth where a nurse in the intensive care unit had tested positive, Noor Hisham said all healthcare workers in the unit had been screened.

“Only two cases have tested positive but we are still investigating whether they contracted the case (infection) from the community or in the hospital.

“As far as we are concerned, we are trying our best to make sure our nurses comply with our effective control measures.”

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