Brunei Darussalam recorded another three new cases of COVID-19 yesterday which included a nine-month-old, the youngest to be tested positive so far. This brings the total positive cases to 40.
  All the new cases are linked to the group which travelled to the Tabligh religious gathering in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
  The new cases were announced by Minister of Health Dato Seri Setia Dr Haji Mohammad Isham bin Haji Jaafar at a press conference to update on COVID-19 in the country at the ministry’s Al-’Afiah Hall yesterday.
  Case 38 is a local man aged 17 who stopped his studies and is unemployed. He participated in the Tabligh gathering in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and returned to the country on March 3 on AirAsia from Kuala Lumpur to Miri, Sarawak. He does not have any symptoms of infection.
  Case 39 is a woman aged 38, the sister-in-law of Case 13 and wife of Case 33. She attended a family dinner with Case 13 and Case 33 on March 4.  She did not travel to Kuala Lumpur recently and does not have any symptoms of infection.
  Case 39 is a nine-month-old girl, who is the daughter of Case 15. She did not travel to Kuala Lumpur recently and has no symptoms of the infection. The infant is in stable condition and is with her mother who was identified as Case 19. 
  All patients are receiving treatment at the National Isolation Centre and are in a stable condition. They don’t have any fever and are not in need of respiratory assistance.
  The Ministry of Health (MoH) is continuously carrying out contact tracing for each case. A total of 638 individuals have been instructed to be in quarantine in accordance with the Infectious Disease Act Chapter 204. Since the spread of COVID-19 in early January 2020, 776 laboratory tests have been carried out.
  The MoH has informed that all locals who attended the Tabligh gathering in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia have been traced. From the total of 85 participants, 76 have returned to the country and have been tested for COVID-19 where 19 are positive and 57 are negative. 
  Nine individuals from the group are still in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia where eight are under quarantine and still awaiting for their test results. One Bruneian student found negative is under quarantine at Hospital Sungai Buloh, Selangor.
  The public, especially the Tabligh congregation, are reminded not to participate in any mass gatherings at the moment including the mass Tabligh gathering to be held in  Makatto, Sulawesi Selatan, Indonesia from March 19-22.
  The MoH said although the new cases do not show a significant increase, the majority of the contacts are still in quarantine and there is a possibility of new positive cases being detected. 
  Meanwhile, the trend in the spread of infections in other countries has also shown a drastic increase. Although the situation of COVID-19 in the country is under control, the risk of entry and transmission of the virus still exists in the country.
  The MoH has reviewed the risk categorisation for countries affected by COVID-19 and the public is advised to refer to the MoH website for the updated list.
  For information, the public can visit the MoH website at www.moh.gov.bn or contact Health advice Line 148.