Amid Cambodia’s worst Covid-19 outbreak to date, provinces outside the cluster’s urban epicenters of Phnom Penh and Sihanoukville are keeping a close watch on arrivals, hoping to prevent the disease’s spread across provincial borders.
The Health Ministry on Wednesday announced 34 new Covid-19 cases, all related to the “February 20” cluster, including two women who had been quarantined at a hotel in Svay Rieng province, the first confirmed cases found there.
After NagaWorld workers began a work boycott over the weekend about employees being kept in the dark about Covid-19 cases at the casino, its owner NagaCorp announced it would act “responsibly and swiftly to volunteer to temporarily suspend its business.”
More than 10,000 Phnom Penh residents are in Covid-19 quarantine, with 74 buildings locked down, following widespread contract tracing and testing into the “February 20” cluster, Phnom Penh governor Khuong Sreng said on Tuesday.
Sihanoukville has recorded 17 new Covid-19 cases in relation to the “February 20” cluster, the Health Ministry announced on Tuesday, as a Preah Sihanouk spokesperson said there were now more than 50 cases in the province.
PassApp says tuk-tuk rides on the company’s app were down 40-45 percent at the end of last week amid the latest Covid-19 outbreak, as Phnom Penh residents spoke of restricting outings to avoid unnecessary contact and using their own transport.
Police manning Covid-19 quarantine centers have been equipped with face masks, metal detectors and electric-stun batons, while security along the country’s borders has also been tightened to prevent illegal entries that circumvent quarantine, officials said.
Authorities have been unable to locate two people who tested positive for Covid-19 for three days since their results came back, Health Ministry spokesperson Or Vandine said on Friday.
The Health Ministry announced 44 more Covid-19 cases on Friday, bringing the total to more than 250 in a week, while authorities suspended all organized sports and gatherings for exercise and Taiwan put Cambodia on its “medium-risk” list, slightly raising travel restrictions.
The Health Ministry on Wednesday reported 40 new cases of Covid-19, a new high for Cambodia.
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