First COVID-19 death reported in Cambodia

Cambodia confirmed its first death due to the coronavirus on Thursday as it combats a new outbreak that has infected hundreds of people.

The Associated Press reports that a 50-year-old man who worked as a driver for a Chinese company in the coastal city of Sihanoukville died at the Khmer-Soviet Friendship Hospital.

Cambodia has so far only confirmed 1,163 coronavirus cases, but a new outbreak has recently spread across the country.

The Cambodian Health Ministry traced the outbreak to a foreign national who broke quarantine and went to a nightclub in February. As the AP reports, this infection caused the government to announce a two-week shutdown on Feb. 20 of all public schools, cinemas, bars and entertainment areas in Phnom Penh, Cambodia’s capital city. The shutdown has already been extended for another two weeks.

Authorities are now enforcing a new law that imposes criminal punishments on those who are found violating health rules, the AP notes.

Cambodia began its vaccine rollout in February using 600,000 doses of the Chinese Sinopharm vaccine, according to the news service. The country has also reportedly received 324,000 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine that were donated and produced by India.