COVID-19 death tally rises to three in Malaysia

Malaysia recorded its third COVID-19 fatality when a 58-year-old local man died at the Tawau Hospital this evening.

Director-General of Health Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah posted on his official Facebook page that the man, case No 152, died at 6.27pm and was a member of Sri Petaling Mosque tabligh gathering cluster.

The man was admitted to the Tawau Hospital on March 9 suffering from symptoms of severe acute respiratory infection.

“He was given respiratory assistance and warded at the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) on the same day. His health deteriorated day by day and he was pronounced dead today at 6.27pm,” said Dr Noor Hisham, who offered his condolences to the man’s family.

Earlier, Dr Noor Hisham said in a statement that 130 new positive cases were reported as of noon today, taking the total to 1,030.

Of the 130 cases, 48 were linked to the tabligh gathering cluster held at the Masjed Jamek Seri Petaling from Feb 28-March 1.

Twenty-six patients are in ICU and in need of respiratory assistance while 87 patients have been discharged.

On Tuesday, Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Adham Baba announced the first two deaths in the country due to COVID-19, involving patients No 178 and 358, who were from Johor and Sarawak respectively.

Both were Malaysians. Patient No 178 was a 34-year-old man who had also attended the tabligh gathering while patient No 358 was a 60-year-old man with a history of chronic ailment.

-- BERNAMA