
Lahad Datu has the highest number of cases with 31, followed by Tawau (23), Kota Kinabalu (13), Kinabatangan (seven), Sandakan (six), Beaufort, Kunak, Tuaran and Sipitang (four each), Kota Belud (three), Putatan (two) and Papar and Semporna (one each).
Kota Kinabalu City Hall announced the closure of all the public parks around the city, and Universiti Malaysia Sabah said all students were allowed to remain in their residential colleges.
Traders at the local markets said they had been swarmed by shoppers early in the morning, but the crowd only lasted for a few hours.
Health authorities disinfected an open market area a few hundred metres from the Kota Kinabalu general market.
Health officers were deployed in strategic areas such as the general market, bus terminal and City Hall to screen visitors for fever.
Town board officers were also stationed at the Donggongon market in Penampang.
In Tamparuli and Kota Belud, sellers at the local tamu (traditional market) were told to pack up by the local authorities. No tamu will be held until March 31.
Traffic in the major towns on the west coast and Kota Kinabalu was considerably reduced.
The number of passengers at the Kota Kinabalu city bus terminal doubled earlier in the day with many travelling back to their hometowns, a City Hall enforcement officer, who identified himself as Bonny, said.
CLICK HERE FOR THE LATEST DATA ON THE COVID-19 SITUATION IN MALAYSIA
Stay current - Follow FMT on WhatsApp, Google news and Telegram