Classmates, family of Sabah pupil with Covid-19 quarantined

KOTA KINABALU: Classmates and family members of a primary pupil who tested positive for Covid-19 have been ordered to undergo mandatory quarantine.

Sabah Health Department director Datuk Dr Christina Rundi said on Wednesday (July 29) that health personnel had carried out screenings of the pupil’s classmates, as well as family members.

“They have all been ordered to undergo a two-week quarantine, ” she said.

The pupil was found to be Covid-19 positive on Monday (July 27) after he sought treatment at a government health clinic here.

It is understood that the Health Department carried out Covid-19 testing on the pupil’s 37 classmates, their parents, as well as eight teachers, as part of measures to check any further spread.

Dr Rundi urged parents not to send their children to school if they were sick.

“They should take them to the clinic for treatment instead, ” she said.

All students must observe the new normal at schools and these include social distancing, wearing face masks, avoiding crowds and washing hands often, she added.

As of Tuesday (July 28), she said, there were three new Covid-19 cases detected in Sabah, bringing the total to 392 cases.

Dr Rundi said that one of the new cases involved a boy from Papar who was identified as a high-risk patient and was screened for the virus at the hospital.

She said the boy was undergoing long-term follow-up medical treatment at the Women and Children Hospital in Likas.

The second new Covid-19 case involved a woman who visited the Lahad Datu hospital for fever treatment, while a third case involved a Penampang man who returned from overseas.

Dr Rundi said that during the first test, the man's result turned up negative but the second test found him positive for Covid-19. He has been admitted to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital here for further treatment.