First Covid-19 death in Malaysia is in Sarawak

Last updated on May 13th, 2021 at 05:47 am

KUALA LUMPUR – A 60-year-old pastor from Sarawak has become the first fatality of Covid19 in Malaysia, the secretariat for Sarawak’s state disaster management committee said on Tuesday (Mar 17).

The victim is Pastor David Cheng from Emmanuel Baptist Church. He passed away at 11am at Sarawak General Hospital (SGH).

The comittee said in a statement that the state Health Department is still in the process of identifyig the sources of Pastor Cheng’s infection. It also reported that 193 close contacts of the deceased have been detected and are undergoing home quarantine.

It was also confirmed that Sarawak has 11 new positive cases, consist of six from Kuching, three from Limbang and one each from Betong and Lawas.

All are being trated at SGH, Sibu Hospital and Miri Hospital.

Currently, 45 Covid-19 cases in Sarawak have been traced to the Sri Petaling cluster, a church cluster in Kuching, a cluster in Sarikei and another cluster in Kuching but whose source is yet to be identified. In addition, 35 persons-under-investigation (PUI) were also reported by the comitte, while 204 patients are awaiting for the results.