KUALA LUMPUR – The Health Ministry has reported 1,671 new Covid-19 cases today, its highest in two weeks.
The last time the figure surpassed today’s mark was on March 7, when Malaysia recorded a total of 1,683 infections.
Selangor tops today’s list with 652 cases, over one-third of the overall number and almost double from yesterday, followed by Penang (328), Sarawak (154), Johor (130), and Sabah (102), according to Health Director-General Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah.
Selangor, Penang and Sabah are the only three states in the country to see a spike in infections from yesterday.
Only Perlis and Putrajaya saw no new infections, while Pahang and Labuan each had three.
Dr Noor Hisham said 631 of the 1,671 infections today involved foreign nationals, and that there are only two imported cases, both in Kuala Lumpur.
The latest figures take the cumulative cases to 331,713 – with Selangor’s 111,550 infections over double that of second-placed Sabah (54,209) – while overall recoveries are now at 316,042.
“There are 14,442 active cases currently,” said Dr Noor Hisham in a statement.
He added that there were four new deaths reported today, bringing the death toll to 1,229.
“A total of 151 individuals are currently receiving treatment in intensive care units, with 64 requiring breathing aid,” he said.
According to him, 236 of today’s cases are linked to prisons and detention centre clusters.
He added that there are four new clusters today, two of which involve workplaces (Teluk Air Tawar in Penang and Perindustrian Pekan Nenas in Johor), while the other two are community clusters (Tg Genting in Sarawak and Pulau Pisang in Perak). – The Vibes, March 20, 2021