PETALING JAYA (THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK) - Malaysia crossed another threshold when the number of Covid-19 deaths surpassed the four-digit mark, with another 22 fatalities recorded on Wednesday (Feb 17).

This meant that since the outbreak of the pandemic in the country, there had been 1,005 deaths, said the Health Ministry.

Wednesday's deaths included a 100-year-old man from Selangor who was suffering from hypertension and asthma, said Director-General of Health Noor Hisham Abdullah.

Of the deaths, eight were in Selangor; Sabah (four); Kuala Lumpur (three); Sarawak (two); Perak (two); and one each in Negeri Sembilan, Kedah and Johor.

"Malaysia also recorded another 2,998 new Covid-19 cases, of which seven were imported cases.

"Of the new cases, 1,578 were locals, while 1,413 were foreigners," Tan Sri Noor Hisham said in a statement on Wednesday.

Dr Noor Hisham added that 5,709 people had recovered, while 231 patients were still in intensive care, with 115 requiring breathing assistance.

The country has now seen a total of 272,163 Covid-19 infections and 229,762 recoveries.

Dr Noor Hisham said Selangor recorded the highest number of daily infections, with 1,382 cases, of which 1,092 were detected following the screening of Covid-19 clusters and close contacts.

Johor has the second highest daily numbers of infections, with 436 cases; followed by Negeri Sembilan, with 233 cases.

A total of 13 new clusters were also detected, of which 10 stemmed from workplaces, two from high-risk groups and one from the community, said Dr Noor Hisham.

Seventy-five other clusters also recorded new cases.

Since the Covid-19 pandemic began, he said that a total 1,028 clusters had been detected nationwide, of which 529 clusters had already ended.

There are still 499 active clusters.