ZCZC
BFF-27
MALAYSIA-COVID-19
Malaysia reports 871 new COVID-19 cases, total exceeds 20,000
KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 18, 2020 (BSS/XINHUA) – Malaysia recorded daily high of
new COVID-19 infections for a second consecutive day with 871 reported
Sunday, bringing the national total to 20,498, the Health Ministry said.
Health Ministry Director-General Noor Hisham Abdullah said in a press
briefing that five of the new cases are imported and 866 are local
transmissions, the majority of which were from the eastern state of Sabah,
with 702 of the new cases reported.
Seven more deaths have been reported, bringing the death toll to 187.
Total COVID-19 cases in Malaysia surpassed the 10,000 mark in mid-
September, nearly 9 months after Malaysia confirmed the first case in late
January. But it only took a month for the figure to double due to the current
wave which began on Sept 20.
Noor Hisham said the reproduction number of COVID-19 in Malaysia (R0 or R-
number), which measures the average number of people that one infected person
will pass on the virus to, is currently 1.5, down from 2.2 on Sept 20.
“Therefore, the number of daily cases will continue to rise, although not
exponentially,” he said.
Noor Hisham described the wave of COVID-19 as “challenging”, advising the
people to strictly observe the restriction measures.
The state of Sabah has been hit hardest recently. The Malaysian government
said earlier that the spike was mainly caused by “illegal immigrants” causing
transmissions in detention facilities.
A state legislative assembly election in late September, which saw intense
campaigning events and people moving between the state and other parts of
Malaysia, further contributed to the spread of the outbreak.
Movement restriction measures are now in place in Sabah, the capital city
of Kuala Lumpur as well as other areas in a bid to curb the transmissions.
The Health Ministry said Sunday that another 701 patients have been
released after recovery, bringing the total cured and discharged to 13,262,
or 64.7 percent of all cases.
Of the remaining 7,049 active cases, 86 are being held in intensive care
and 28 of those are in need of assisted breathing.
BSS/XINHUA/ARS/1717 hrs