More than 200 workers at a vaccination centre in Malaysia test positive for COVID-19
14 July, 2021
A total of 204 workers at a vaccination centre in the Malaysian state of Selangor have tested positive for COVID-19, Malaysia's national coordinating minister for COVID-19 immunisation Khairy Jamaluddin said on Tuesday (Jul 13).
The vaccination centre located at the Ideal Convention Centre (IDCC), in the state capital Shah Alam, was closed for cleaning on Tuesday.
The cases were detected after all 453 workers at the vaccination centre underwent mass polymerase chain reaction testing on Saturday, said Mr Khairy.
The results of the tests showed that the positive cases had a cycle threshold value of more than 35, indicating a low viral load, he said. This was possibly because most of the workers - about 400 of them, or 88 per cent - had been vaccinated.
The spate of infections at the IDCC vaccination centre was the first involving a "mega vaccination centre", said Mr Khairy.
"Due to the high number of COVID-19 cases in the Klang Valley, it is difficult for us to ascertain whether an infection occurred in IDCC or elsewhere," he told a press conference.
All workers at the vaccination centre will be replaced as a precaution to reduce the potential of infection, he added.
People who went for their jabs at the IDCC vaccination centre between Jul 9 and Jul 12 have been advised to self-quarantine for 10 days and take a COVID-19 test if they have symptoms.
A total of 6,000 vaccination appointments were rescheduled following the centre's closure. Notifications were made via SMS and social media.
Malaysia's national COVID-19 immunisation task force was instructed to go to the IDCC on Tuesday to help those who were unaware of the closure, Mr Khairy.
The task force will continue to "step up efforts" to ensure the IDCC vaccination centre is safe, he said, adding that the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health will monitor air quality at the centre.
Other vaccination centres were also reminded to continue to adhere to the stipulated standard operating procedures. Those with problems, especially with overcrowding, were told to inform the task force so that immediate action could be taken.
Malaysia entered its third nationwide lockdown on Jun 1 after consecutive days of record daily new COVID-19 cases. On Tuesday, it reported a record 11,079 new cases.
The country has administered nearly 11.8 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines. A total of 421,479 doses were administered on Monday, the highest number in a day.
More than 3.6 million people have received their second dose and completed the full vaccination regimen.
Malaysia is targeting to inoculate 80 per cent of its population, or 26.7 million out of the total 33 million people in the country.
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