THE Pasai cluster, involving several districts in Sarawak, has now infected 2,363 individuals, entering the sixth generation of victims, said Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah. 

The director-general of health blamed this on the failure to comply with the standard operating procedure (SOP).

“So far, the Health Ministry has detected 2,363 positive cases as a result of 25,500 screenings,” he said at a press conference in Putrajaya today.

Noor Hisham said the Pasai cluster was confirmed on January 9 and its index case was traced to a 32-year-old woman who came back from Johor on December 29 to attend her father’s funeral.

She was found positive for Covid-19 on January 6. 

“The customs of burying the dead in a longhouse takes place three days in a row and it involves many visitors from other longhouses,” he said. 

When the individuals gathered in the longhouse, there was less isolation and compliances to SOP, he added. 

Noor Hisham said the index case should have quarantined at a hotel instead of the longhouse.

He said the cluster has also infected 46 health workers in the areas. 

“They (patients) came to the health facility for treatment but maybe the health workers thought it was a green zone, so an infection has occurred,” he said. 

Today, Malaysia reported 12 new Covid-19 clusters, of which 11 are linked to workplaces. 

After 26 days straight days of reporting more than 3,000 Covid-19 cases daily, Malaysia today logged 2,764 new infections in the last 24 hours. – February 9, 2021.