4 theSun | MONDAY JUNE 29 2009

news without borders

H1N1 statistics
cough on Thursday and was admitted

Toddler is 17th
(as of 8am, June 28)

12
to Sultanah Bahiyah Hospital in Alor
Star on the same day. He was tested » New cases:
positive on Friday, making him the 17th ( Malaysians 7, Indonesians 3,
locally transmitted case. Americans 2)
Mohd Ismail said it was important
for people to follow the 10 steps to
observe during home quarantine.
» Imported cases:
11

locally-transmitted case “In the case of the toddler, although

the mother tested positive a few days
after her return, if they had observed the
rules during home quarantine, the spread
of the virus could have been minimised,”
he said at a press conference.
The remaining 11 new cases were im-
» Local transmission: 1
» Total no. of cases: 124
( 88 discharged, 36 under
treatment)

by Hemananthani Sivanandam ported from such places as Melbourne,

newsdesk@thesundaily.com
KUALA LUMPUR: Twelve new cases of
the Influenza A(H1N1) were reported
yesterday, bringing the total number of
confirmed cases to 124.
Health Director-General Tan Sri Dr
Mohd Ismail Merican said that of the
12 cases, one was a locally-transmitted
case involving a 15-month-old boy.
He is the son of the 86th case, a
29-year-old woman who returned from
Phuket on June 21 and tested positive
on Wednesday.
The toddler did not have any travel
history and was placed under home
quarantine. He started having fever and
Jakarta, the United States and London.
Asked if the situation has reached
the critical level, Mohd Ismail said it is
under control as the number is not as
many as reported in other countries.
“If we are complacent, the number
will increase but at the moment, the
situation is under control,” he said.
He also said all schools, except SMK
Abdul Rahim 2 in Kudat, Sabah, are open.
One hundred and twenty-nine from SMK
Abdul Rahim 2 have been placed under
home quarantine and one student, who
has shown symptoms of the virus, admit-
ted to Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Kota
Kinabalu.
Thirty-six people are undergoing
treat-
ment and 88 have
been discharged. The hospitals with
cases are Sungai Buloh Hospital, Kuala
Lumpur Hospital, Penang Hospital, Sul-
tanah Bahiyah Hospital in Alor Star,
Kulim Hospital, Hospital Tuanku Ja’afar,
Seremban, Queen Elizabeth Hospital in
Sabah, Sandakan Hospital, and Sultanah
Aminah Hospital in Johor Baru.
Meanwhile, SINGAPORE yesterday
confirmed 145 new H1N1 cases, the
highest recorded in a single day, bringing
the total tally to 599.
However, the republic’s Health
Ministry said the severity of the disease
remained relatively mild.

Negri
R/THESUN

school
N MOHD NO

closed
KAMARIDUA

SEREMBAN: Sekolah Tinggi Chung Hwa

will be closed one week starting today
after a schoolgirl was confirmed positive
with A(H1n1) flu.
Principal Sua Sin Zang said yesterday
the girl was believed to have been infected
with the virus by her 22-year-old brother
who returned home for a semester break
from a university in Australia last Monday.
“The victim, a Form Three student and
her brother are now under quarantine at
Tuanku Ja’afar Hospital for treatment.”
He said the student, who had fever
and flu on Friday, was treated at the
hospital and confirmed to have been
infected with the virus yesterday.
The Health Department had directed
that the victim’s 46 classmates and 14
teachers to be quarantined at home for
University acts to one week, Bernama reports.
“We have discussed this with the
check H1N1 spread Health Department and feel that the
school’s closure will ensure the safety
of students and staff.”
A “FRESHMAN” registers at Universiti Malaya’s First Col- The school has 1,650 students and
Judge lege for the new 2009/10 intake yesterday. 80 teachers.
The incoming students were asked to fill medical declara-
laments tion forms to determine whether they had travelled out
In PENANG, Pulau Tikus assembly-
man Koay Teng Hai was placed under
lack of of the country recently and developed symptoms of the home quarantine yesterday after he
records Influenza A(H1N1). developed flu-like symptoms following
“Those showing symptoms will be quarantined. We will
pg 7 call our clinic officers, and confirmed cases will be sent to
a visit to China lately.
State environment, health, welfare
University Malaya Medical Centre,” Mohd Asyraf Salleh, a and caring society committee chairman
student volunteer at the First College, said. Phee Boon Poh said Koay had returned
The new students were supportive of the measures taken from China on June 13 and developed
by the university authorities to help prevent the spread of the symptoms on Friday.
the infection on the campus. “We have put him on home quarantine
However, some parents – such as “Wong”, 52, from Pen- as a safety measure,” Phee said, adding
ang – felt that more could have been done, like providing the that results of the tests conducted on
students with face masks. Koay would be known today.

Malaysians still in shock over MJ’s death

by Charles Ramendran
newsdesk@thesundaily.com
PETALING JAYA: Three days after
the death of the King of Pop Michael
Jackson, Malaysians are still in shock
and disbelief.
“I am still in denial. I do not want to
believe he is gone, maybe someday he
will reappear,” Arul Davasagayam, 44,
one of Malaysia’s early MJ impersona-
tors, told theSun.
“I grew up listening to the Beatles
and never thought then that there
would be a musician as great, if not
greater, than John Lennon until I saw
Michael perform Thriller and Beat It. I
was stumped.”
Davasagayam, who said he was
fascinated by the Michael Jackson fever
in the mid-80s, won the top prize when
he took part in the first MJ look-alike
competition held in Kuala Lumpur dur-
ing that time.
“His music and moves will last in our
lifetime and many more generations
to come,” added the father of five and
professional photographer, who also
plays in a band made up of his two sons
and a nephew.
Jasmine Leong, 28, said Jackson’s
music was like a companion to her
when she was growing up.
“I will miss him but his songs will
remain etched in my heart,” she said.
Blues guitarist Aznan Aziz, who is
in his late 40s, said stars like Jackson
were hard to come by nowadays.
“Although I was not a big fan, he is
a legend on par with the King of Rock
& Roll (Elvis Presley). May he rest in
peace,” Aznan said.