Author: Thu, 2020-04-09 22:52 JEDDAH: More than 35,000 people are in home self-isolation in Saudi Arabia with about two-thirds having either recovered or ended their required quarantine period and been cleared by health officials. A little over 12,000 remain in quarantine, 9,000 of whom are in self-isolation at home and 3,000 are in designated accommodation. Saudi Arabia recorded 355 new cases of COVID-19 on Thursday, taking the total number of active cases to 2,577 with a total of 3,287 reported cases since the beginning of the outbreak. The new cases refer to those that have been reported during the last 24 hours. Of the new cases, 89 were recorded in Madinah, 83 in Riyadh, 78 in Makkah and 45 in Jeddah. There are currently 41 cases in intensive care units. Thirty-five recoveries were announced, bringing the total number to 666 recoveries so far with three new fatalities, bringing the total death toll to 44. “There are a number of services and applications available for users 24/7; these services are available to provide medical advice through the number 937 or ‘Sehha’ application by medical experts around the clock,” said Health Ministry spokesman, Dr. Mohammed Al-Abd Al-Aly. Al-Aly said that updates about COVID-19 in the Kingdom with details of its geographic spread can be found at covid19.moh.gov.sa. He added: “In response to calls of volunteers, health practitioners and specialists in various areas of support in health volunteering, the Ministry of Health has launched a volunteering platform with approximately 80,000 volunteers signed up so far.” Volunteers can apply through https://volunteer.srca.org.sa.  The ministry has launched a new public health awareness campaign called “Meter and a Half” in a continued effort to raise social awareness about the importance of social distancing. Messages are broadcast through several platforms that encourage individuals to keep a distance of one and a half meters between people both inside and outside the household, to eliminate the spread of COVID-19. The National Cybersecurity Authority (NCA) warned residents and citizens to be beware of messages from fake accounts bearing the Ministry of Health’s name and asking to click on links. The NCA has warned of such phishing and fraudulent links as they could steal personal information. The authority encourages people to follow reliable news sources from the health ministry’s official accounts, make sure the messages received are from official accounts and check with the sender before opening anonymous links.Main category: Saudi ArabiaTags: CoronavirusChina CoronavirusCOVID-19 Saudi Arabia announces 355 new cases of coronavirusForeign expats choose Saudi Arabia over home countries during virus pandemic