SIBU, April 19: Parents with children studying in SMK Ulu Balingian where 101 positive Covid-19 cases were detected have been advised to remain calm.
Tamin assemblyman Christopher Gira Sambang said today the situation is under control even though a three-digit positive cases had been detected which triggered the Ulu Balingian cluster.
The Health Ministry together with other authorities, he said are closely monitoring the situation.
“I was informed by the Selangau district education officer that all those who were tested positive have been placed in a quarantine and low risk treatment centre (PKRC) in Sibu.
“Those who are still in the school are categorised as low risk or are not in close contact with the positive cases. The school is also under ‘lockdown’ now” he assured.
He added that the boarding students’ food supply is not affected by the situation, thus parents do not have to worry about that.
The index case for the cluster was a 16-year-old student whom the authority believed had contracted the coronavirus from his longhouse.
He was detected from symptomatic examination at the Selangau health clinic on April 13. Following that 101 individuals were also found positive of Covid-19 from contact tracing including families, students and staff of the school.
“The student is from one of the longhouses near the school. A number of longhouses in the area have previously been ordered ‘lockdown’. I believe the virus is still present among the residents even after the ‘lockdown’ order on their longhouses had been uplifted,” he said.
SMK Ulu Balingian is a full boarding school with most students from longhouses in the Selangau and Ulu Balingian areas, he added.
Gira also urged longhouse residents in Selangau to continue to adhere to standard operating procedures (SOPs) to curb the spread of the Covid-19 epidemic. — DayakDaily
