Malaysia reports first death due to coronavirus, a 60-year-old pastor from Sarawak

KUCHING – Malaysia reported its first death from the coronavirus pandemic on Tuesday (March 17), after a pastor in Sarawak died.

According to a statement issued by the Sarawak state disaster management committee, the victim, a 60-year-old pastor from the Emmanuel Baptist Church in state capital Kuching died in the Sarawak General Hospital at 11am on Tuesday.

The state health department is still in the process of identifying the source of his infection, it said.

The committee said 193 close contacts of the deceased have been traced and are undergoing home quarantine.

As at Monday, Malaysia had recorded 553 cases of the virus, the highest tally in South-east Asia. More than half of these are linked to a mass religious gathering by the Tabligh missionary group held in late February at a mosque in Kuala Lumpur.

The gathering was attended by some 16,000 people, including Singapore and Brunei nationals.

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