A roadblock on the expressway from Samarahan to Kuching. – File photo
KUCHING: The Sarawak Health Department is tracking down close contacts of the Covid-19 positive case from Bintulu after it was discovered that she had travelled to Kota Samarahan recently.
Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah Embas said the Bintulu positive case which was revealed yesterday, was said to have visited some relatives in Kota Samarahan and returned to Bintulu sometime on March 14.
“So under that circumstances, the contact tracing took place and had led the Health Department to her, and she must have traveled from Samarahan to Bintulu, and that’s why they are looking for the bus.
“Then somehow some relatives also visited her in Bintulu, and the Health Department is monitoring them as persons under surveillance (PUS),” he said in a press conference after chairing a Sarawak Disaster Management Committee (SDMC) meeting today.
Uggah stressed the importance of inter-district travel ban especially between red to green zones because one small misstep could lead to a disastrous outcome.
This is particularly true for the Bintulu case because the patient was asymptomatic while relatives continued to visit her in Bintulu after the Samarahan visit, until she was found positive yesterday, he added.
“We hope the public will cooperate with us and with the police who are keeping the stringent inter-district rule,” said Uggah.
Sarawak Health Director Dr Chin Zin Hing said his department will continue to investigate and track down any close contact to the Bintulu case.
Meanwhile, Minister of Local Government and Housing explained that although normally the incubation period of the Covid-19 virus is 14 days, it is still difficult to fully confirm that symptoms will appear during that period because the virus is still new and being studied.
“Commonly the older folk will show symptoms earlier and the younger ones with better antibodies a bit later. This is why we in Sarawak General Hospital (SGH) have a 14-day step down period for recovered patients.
“If they are discharged early and go out, they may pass the virus to somebody else although they are healthy or just recovered. Nobody knows the minimum period but normally it’s 14 days. We must be very careful and swab test them at least six times during step down,” he said.
Hence, Dr Sim said, it is crucial for anybody, even those returning from outside Sarawak, to not just undergo 14-days quarantine but also frequent swab tests even though they do not show any symptoms.