KUCHING, May 15 — The Kuching Division, comprising the districts of Kuching, Padawan, Sematan, Bau and Lundu, is now a yellow zone after being declared a red zone in March, Sarawak Disaster Management Committee (SDMC) chairman Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah said today.
He said the division recorded fewer than 40 Covid-19 positive cases over the last 14 days.
“With the upgrading of the Kuching Division from red into the yellow zone, there are no more red zones in the state,” he told a daily media briefing here.
Uggah said no new positive cases were reported today, but six recoveries have been discharged after receiving treatment at government hospitals.
He said there are now 121 positive cases, including one in the intensive care unit, who are still being treated at government hospitals.
He said Sarawak has recorded 544 positive cases since the first case was recorded on March 13.
Uggah also said 20 cases of persons-under-investigation (PUI) were recorded today, while 11 other PUI cases are awaiting laboratory test results.
Uggah also said SDMC, at its meeting this morning, has decided that samples must be taken from Sarawakian students upon their arrival in the state from peninsula Malaysia, Sabah and Labuan.
He said the decision was made after reports were received on a new IPT Covid-19 cluster from outside the state.
“Therefore, SDMC has decided to take preventive steps, such as by taking samples from Sarawakian students upon their arrival from peninsula Malaysia, Sabah and Labuan.
“They will also be screened for Covid-19 and placed in hotels until the results of the samples have been obtained.
“If the results of the samples are negative, they will be allowed to return home, but they will have to put on the wristbands and continue with the stay-home quarantine,” Uggah said.
Uggah, who is also the deputy chief minister, said for federal government officers from peninsula Malaysia, Sabah and Labuan who want to return to work in Sarawak, they are required to go for polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests three days before they enter the state.
“If the results of the PCR tests are negative, only then are they allowed to enter the state,” Uggah stressed.
He also said the state government is relaxing conditions for foreign workers who want to return to their countries.
“However, the state government does not guarantee that they will be allowed to return to the state again,” he said.
