KUCHING: Organisers of events that draw large number of people to confined spaces were yesterday urged to postpone their events for the time being due to an increase in Influenza A (H1N1) cases.

“To minimise the risk (of spreading the flu) as much as possible, please defer big events,” Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Dr George Chan told a press conference here.

However, Dr Chan, who is the State Disaster Relief Committee chairman, said the Rainforest World Music Festival (RWMF) scheduled this weekend would go on as scheduled.

“We decided to hold it and the Health Department is deploying staff from the other divisions to have added precautions imposed during the Rainforest (RWMF).

“We will provide festival goers with face masks, clinic facilities and thermal scanner at the venue,” he said.

Last week, Dr Chan said public gatherings and functions in the state could be banned by the government if there was a case of local transmission of H1N1.

He said the ban would be necessary to contain the spread of the disease.

Sarawak on Monday recorded five local transmission cases.

Three of the cases were in Miri, involving a mother and her three sons who were believed to have been infected by their father/husband; and one in Kuching, where a 15-year-old boy had contracted the flu from his brother.

As of yesterday, the state has a total of 16 confirmed cases, eight in Kuching, two in Bintulu, five in Miri and one in Sibu.

Another 24 cases are pending test results.

There were no new cases reported yesterday.

Meanwhile, Dr Chan said currently there was no directive to close schools in the state because no children who tested positive had come in contact with students in schools.

He said the two children, aged seven and six years old in Miri, and the 15-year-old from Kuching who tested positive, were home quarantined and did not go to school.

Dr Chan gave a positive outlook on the disease as he said the public should not worry as the disease was still treatable and none had gone into serious condition.

“Like any other disease, the sooner you can control it, the better.

“It is not that easy (to contract the virus) through loose contact. It is the close contact that we worry about,” he said.

He advised those who had been ordered to undergo home quarantine to observe isolation as much as possible to avoid spreading it to family members.

Dr Chan advised the public to listen to the advice given by the doctors, not just by him; and to be honest and think about others.

He pointed out that washing hands was effective and did not need lot of effort.

He also urged the public to wash their hands after returning from public places before coming into contact with family members.

When asked if there is any vaccination for the virus, he said there was none at the moment, but they might be one in the next few months.

To another question, he asked staff of companies that forced workers to undergo home quarantine and had their leave entitlement deducted, Dr Chan urged them to refer the matter to the Labour Department.