THE Health Ministry has detected a new Covid-19 cluster involving Gombak police, said Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah.

“We detected a cluster involving staff at the Gombak district police headquarters. This is one of the reasons why we conduct periodic screening at district police headquarters and other places,” the director-general of health told a daily press briefing on the coronavirus in Putrajaya today.

He said the detection allowed the ministry to act by isolating and treating those infected, and tracing and quarantining their close contacts.

“We know that the virus is in our community, but how can we prevent infections? This is why we urge Malaysians to comply with the standard operating procedures.

“The most important thing is social distancing,” he said, adding that studies have shown this can reduce the probability of infection by more than 60%.

One of the 11 locally transmitted cases reported today is from the Gombak cluster, which was detected through the screening of two earlier patients’ close contacts.

Malaysia reported 19 new virus cases, bringing the national tally to 8,322.

Another 39 patients have been discharged, taking total recoveries to 6,674.

Active cases stand at 1,531, while five patients are still in intensive care.

No new fatalities were reported, keeping the death toll at 117. – June 7, 2020.