CORONAVIRUS | Various precautionary measures were taken by the Penor Prison in Kuantan, including sanitisation of all its building blocks, to prevent the spread of Covid-19 although no Covid-19 positive case has been recorded among its inmates.

Penor Prison director Abu Hasan Hussain said the safety and health of the inmates have always been the priority of the prison management, following which measures had been taken since the early stage of the Covid-19 outbreak to prevent its infection.

He said the measures taken included requiring prison staff and visitors to have their body temperature taken and to wear a face mask before being allowed into the premises, with more stringent check conducted on new inmates.

“The sanitation operation is conducted to allay fear among family members of the inmates as we received many inquiries from them, expressing their concern with the spread of Covid-19 as the prisoners are sharing cells," he added.

He was met after the sanitation exercise at the prison today, which was also attended by acting Pahang Fire and Rescue director Mohd Zahar Abdullah.

On the sanitation exercise, Abu Hasan said it was carried out at all the four cell blocks, during which all the inmates were gathered in an open area to facilitate the work, which was carried out by firefighters and workers from the Kuantan Municipal Council.

Besides the cell blocks, the sanitation exercise also involved the workshops, library, classrooms, the health centre, as well as the office and staff quarters," he added.

There are 2,473 inmates at the Penor Prison.

Meanwhile, Mohd Zahar said the Pahang Fire and Rescue Department had conducted sanitation exercise at 250 premises, including government buildings, business premises and public areas such as markets, since March 30.

He said it was conducted with the cooperation of various agencies, including the local government authorities and the Solid Waste and Public Cleansing Management Corporation (SWCorp).

- Bernama

Keep up with the latest information on the outbreak in the country with Malaysiakini's free Covid-19 tracker.

Malaysiakini is providing free access to the most important updates on the coronavirus pandemic. You can find them here.

Help keep independent media alive - subscribe to Malaysiakini.