Eateries can open till 10pm
Published on: Saturday, July 24, 2021
By: Anthea Peter
.jpg "Eateries can open till 10pm")
Kota Kinabalu: Eateries in Sabah are now allowed to operate for an additional hour from 6am until 10pm, under Phase Two of the National Recovery Plan.Sabah’s Covid-19 Spokesperson Datuk Seri Masidi Manjun (pic) said this applies to restaurants, cafes, coffee shops, food trucks, stalls, roadside stalls, roadside and mobile hawkers, hawker centres, food courts and kiosks.
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“Bars, karaoke (KTV) and entertainment outlets are not classified under this category and thus are not allowed to operate,” said Masidi in a statement, Friday.
Under the revised Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) updated Thursday, dine-in activities are subjected to a maximum of two people per table and ordered meals must be sent directly to the customer’s table by staff.
“Buffets are allowed on condition of providing disposable plastic gloves for all customers,” said Masidi, adding that children below 12 are not allowed to dine in.
Eatery owners must ensure that tables are set up inside the premises only and ensure that only customers with a low-risk Covid-19 status on MySejahtera are dining in.
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“Any social activities, poolbars, ceremonies or any gatherings are not allowed,” Masidi stressed.
Meanwhile, general and daily markets are now allowed to operate from 6am to 6pm, an additional three hours from the previous 3pm curfew.
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“Roadside stalls selling vegetables, fish and fruits are also allowed to operate from 6am to 6pm,” said Masidi, adding that farmer’s markets (tamu), weekly markets, night markets and pasar tani remain prohibited.
Four new clusters were identified in Kinabatangan, Sandakan Tawau and Tongod respectively which saw over 100 cumulative infections.
In Sandakan, a cluster named as the Jalan Utara Dua cluster, sparked within a male ward in a government hospital which saw transmission among other patients and hospital staff.
Masidi said the index patient is a 74-year-old man who had gone for a chest x-ray and was later tested positive during a screening.
“Contact screenings found another 11 positive involving two staff and nine patients, while one prison guard and one same-household contact were also tested positive,” said Masidi, adding that there are 13 cumulative cases in this cluster to date.
Masidi said 28 patients in the ward were tested negative, while 18 healthcare staff are still awaiting their results.
The Jalan Stesen TV Cluster in Tawau recorded 68 cases to date, involving transmission at a poultry farm in Mukim Sri Tanjung.
Masidi said the index patient is a non-Malaysian 24-year-old male who is a labourer at the farm.
“Contact screenings found another 48 positive among family, colleagues and neighbours who live at the workers quarters. Out of 124 contacts screened, 68 were found positive including 19 new cases on Friday,” he said.
In Tongod, the Kg Mananam Cluster was sparked by a 49-year-old male security personnel at a primary school.
“Contact screening found another 14 positive within village community, bringing the cumulative tally in this cluster to 20,” said Masidi.
In Kinabatangan, the Bukit Mas cluster, involving workplace transmission in Mukim Sukau, was sparked by a 32-year-old male store clerk at Ladang Sawit Bukit Mas.
“He had experienced symptoms since July 15 and was later tested positive on July 19 at the Lahad Datu Health Clinic. He has been referred to the Lahad Datu Hospital for further treatment.
“Contact screening found another 10 positive among family, workers and dependents bringing the cumulative total of cases in this cluster to 11,” said Masidi.
Sabah’s cases rose to 516 on Friday from 497 on Thursday, while one death was recorded in Beaufort.
Masidi said close contacts account for 41.9 per cent of the caseload with 216 cases, followed by cluster cases (116 cases) and symptomatic cases (90 cases).
Kota Kinabalu topped the list with 108 cases followed by Sipitang with 67 cases. Nearly half of KK’s cases are close contacts, while Sipitang’s cases are mostly contributed by clusters (19 cases) and close contacts (11 cases).
Of the 516 caseload, 88.6 per cent are in category one (215 cases) and category two (242 cases), which do not need hospital treatment.
Some 369 Covid-19 patients have been discharged from the hospital while 3,738 patients are currently receiving treatment at hospitals and low risk quarantine and treatment centres (PKRC).
Meanwhile, 10 localities will be placed under Enhanced Movement Control Order (EMCO) from July 25 to Aug 7, namely Kg Kolam in Kudat, Taman Sabana Phase I in Keningau, Kg Nagapas, Jalan Kebun Lama in Papar as well as Kg Berhala Darat and Kg Melayu Bumiputra in Sandakan.
Six Kota Kinabalu localities will also be placed under EMCO on the same dates, namely Taman Sepanggar, Angkasa Apartments (Block D and E), Bandar Sinsuran, Kg Sepakat Jaya, Kg Rampayan and KG Lokub.Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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