Sarawak to implement full lockdown as Covid cases soar

Sarawak, the only state to remain under conditional movement control order, has agreed to implement a full lockdown beginning May 29 in order to curb its spike in Covid-19 cases.

The lockdown will remain in place until June 11.

Sarawak Deputy Chief Minister Douglas Uggah Embas said the decision was made following the dramatic increase in cases, due in part to Raya gatherings, which he said had put tremendous pressure on the state’s healthcare system.

“I plead with Sarawakians to cooperate with the authorities and to understand that healthcare facilities are at a critical level,” he said at a press conference in Kuching.

Sarawak logged 772 cases today, the second highest in the country after Selangor, pushing total cases in the state to 44,758.

It has registered 97 deaths so far, recording an average of 625 cases per day.

According to Uggah, 81 patients are in critical condition in the ICU including 31 who are in need of respiratory assistance.

“The capacity of ICU beds in Sarawak is at a critical level too,” he added.

He said Sarawak had recorded an upward trend in number of Covid-19 fatalities since March, with 29 deaths logged that month – an average of one death per day.

“The upward trend continued in April, which saw a total of 69 deaths recorded, equivalent to a daily average of two deaths.

“As of May 27, a total of 91 Covid-19 deaths have been recorded in Sarawak with a daily average of three deaths.”

Asked about efforts to increase the number of ICU beds, Uggah who is also state disaster management committee chairman said the process of upgrading ICU facilities is underway.

“For the last few months, we have already appealed to the federal government to help us improve our healthcare capacity to deal with the Covid-19 crisis,” he said.

From May 9 to 15, a total of 3,272 cases were reported in Sarawak, a daily average of 467 cases.

The trend increased with 520 cases per day recorded the following week.

A total of 3,118 cases were reported as of today, with a daily average of 623 cases.