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uthorities have dismissed as a hoax a rumor that two volunteers at a makeshift COVID-19 hospital in the Kemayoran athletes village in Central Jakarta died after contracting the disease.

The rumor began on a Facebook account under the name Andriana Nova Grantina, in which the apparent account holder said someone named Sia Ai Hung and that person’s sister, Sia Ai, had died of COVID-19 on Monday and Wednesday, respectively.

“Both of them were volunteers at the Kemayoran athletes village emergency hospital,” said the post, which was published on Wednesday.

The post, which also featured purported photos of the two, was later taken down, but a screengrab of the Facebook post has since been circulating through other social media platforms, including Twitter.

Human rights activists Nursyahbani Katjasungkana reposted the screenshot of the Facebook post on her Twitter account on Wednesday.

The head of the makeshift hospital’s COVID-19 task force, commander Brig. Gen. Agung Hermawanto, said authorities had not received any reports regarding the information.

“We currently have approximately 300 volunteers working at the emergency hospital, and so far, we have received no report of the death of volunteers,” Agung told The Jakarta Post.

Echoing Agung, Joint Defense Area Command I commander Vice Adm. Yudo Margono said the information was a hoax.

“We have checked the information through the BPPSDM’s [Board for Development and Empowerment Human Health Resources] database, and there are no volunteers under the names [Sia Ai Hung and Sia Ai] in the athlete village’s emergency hospital,” Yudo told the Post.

Yudo also assured the public that any information related to the makeshift hospital would be directly reported to him, so there would not be any missing information on the situation in the field.

He went on to decry the circulation of “fake news” about the hospital on social media in recent days.

Last week, purported instructions to use a designated doctor’s phone number for admission to the emergency hospital at the Kemayoran athletes village circulated on social media. They were a hoax.

Jakarta Military Command chief Maj. Gen. Eko Margiyono, who has been appointed to lead the operation of the makeshift hospital, has also spoken out against circulating hoaxes, calling on residents to trust the government’s information and advice in the battle against COVID-19.

“I demand that whoever is making such hoaxes stop their actions, as it will only make the situation worse,” Eko said as quoted by Antara on March 26.

He also advised people to not panic over information circulating on social media and reassured the public that the hospital was properly equipped with supporting facilities, including a safe-handling service and self-quarantine facility.

Jakarta Police spokesperson Sr. Comr. Yusri Yunus said that 43 hoaxes regarding COVID-19 were under police investigation and had resulted in the arrest of seven suspects so far, all of whom were charged under the 2016 Electronic Information and Transactions (ITE) Law, kompas.com reported.

Since it began operations last week, the makeshift hospital at the athletes village has treated some 428 patients, 111 of whom have tested positive for COVID-19. The hospital has also reported three deaths of patients suspected to have contracted COVID-19.

As of Thursday afternoon, Indonesia has confirmed 1,790 coronavirus cases with 170 fatalities, making the country’s mortality rate, 9.5 percent, among the highest in the world. (nal)