KUALA LUMPUR:The total number of new COVID-19 cases in the country remained in three digits for the 16th consecutive day with 629 cases today apart from recording six more deaths while 245 people recovered from the disease.

Health director-general Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said with the latest development, the overall total in Malaysia now stands at 18,758 cases while the death toll was 176 individuals and there were 12,259 full recoveries so far.

“There are now 6,323 active cases with COVID-19 infectivity and they have been isolated and given treatment,” he said in a virtual media conference via the Ministry of Health (MOH) Facebook site today.
Sabah continued to record the highest new infections with 489 cases, following more laboratory results obtained.

He said the laboratories in Sabah conducted 3,296 tests yesterday and the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) is assisting to send 5,340 samples to Peninsular Malaysia for faster processing.

Dr Noor Hisham said for states in the Klang Valley under Conditional Movement Control Order (CMCO), Selangor recorded 50 new cases, Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur (eight cases) and Putrajaya (two cases).

In Penang there were 33 cases, Federal Territory of Labuan (19 cases), Perak (nine cases), Kedah (seven cases), Johor (five cases), Melaka (three cases) and one case each in Negeri Sembilan and Pahang.

Commenting further, he said 627 cases were local transmissions involving 577 Malaysians and 50 foreigners while the two import cases reported involved Malaysians returning from New Zealand and Singapore.

“For local transmissions, 16 cases were visitors who returned from Sabah which brings the number of cases with history of travelling to Sabah since Sept 20 to 437 cases,” he said.

On the new fatalities, he said five were recorded in Sabah involving Malaysians and one foreigner in Kuala Lumpur.

Dr Noor Hisham said in Sabah, death case number 171st was a 66-year-old man in Queen Elizabeth Hospital who had hypertension, diabetes and stroke, the 172nd death was a 72-year-old man in the Duchess of Kent Hospital with heart disease and fatality number 173rd was a man, 39, in Semporna Hospital who was suffering from stroke.

Death case number 174th and 175th were from Queen Elizabeth Hospital involving a 74-year-old woman who had high blood pressure, diabetes and kidney problem and a man, 67, with hypertension, heart disease and stroke.

At Universiti Malaya Medical Centre, Kuala Lumpur, death number 176th involved a foreign man , 52, with diabetes, heart disease. psoriasis and spinal problem,” he said.

Ninety-nine individuals who are positive for COVID-19 are being treated at Intensive Care Unit (ICU) with 31 of the requiring respiratory assistance.

-- BERNAMA