James Kon
Brunei Darussalam ended the five-day streak of no new COVID-19 cases as one new imported case was reported yesterday. The total number of confirmed cases is now 144.
With the new case, there are two active cases in the country receiving treatment at the National Isolation Centre.
Minister of Health Dato Seri Setia Dr Haji Mohd Isham bin Haji Jaafar revealed details of the latest COVID-19 case in Brunei during a press conference at the Al-‘Afiah Hall of the Ministry of Health (MoH).
“Case 144 is a 36-year-old man who arrived in Brunei Darussalam on Royal Brunei Airlines (RB) BI874 flight on August 19, 2020 via Kuala Lumpur from India. The case was detected through the COVID-19 swab test screening programme for individuals who arrive in the country from abroad. He reportedly had fever on arrival in the country but no longer shows signs of infection at present. He is being treated at the National Isolation Centre,” the minister said.
“The latest confirmed case is an expatriate who has been working in Brunei Darussalam for the past five years. He had been in his home country since February and is now back in Brunei Darussalam,” he added.
The MoH has identified 19 contacts, who travelled with Case 144 on RB BI874. Fourteen have undergone the COVID-19 swab test and were confirmed negative, while the rest are still awaiting results. All contacts are undergoing quarantine under the Infectious Diseases Act (Chapter 204).
“The total number of active cases currently receiving treatment at the National Isolation Centre is two, and both are in stable condition. The total number of cases that has recovered remains at 139 individuals,” the minister added.
Meanwhile, 615 individuals are undergoing mandatory isolation at government monitoring centres. Since March 2020, 4,618 individuals have completed their mandatory self-isolation at the monitoring centres. In the past 24 hours, 480 samples have been tested for the SARS-CoV-2 virus, bringing the total number of laboratory tests conducted since January 2020 to 50,336 tests.
According to healthinfo.gov.bn, there have been 113 cases in the Brunei-Muara District, 25 in the Belait District and six in the Tutong District.
For information, the public can visit the MoH official website, or contact the Health Advice Line at 148.