A 73-year-old woman, who died in a hospital in Thrissur on Thursday, has been found to be coronavirus positive. Chavakkad native Khadheeja Kutty, was an interstate traveller who came to Kerala from Mumbai. With this, the death toll due to COVID-19 in Kerala has risen to five.
The woman was admitted to a hospital at Chavakkad in Thrissur on May 20, after she showed breathing difficulties while travelling to her house after crossing the interstate border at Walayar.
“As her condition worsened, though authorities tried to shift her to Thrissur Medical College for expert treatment, she passed away before that,” said a release by Thrissur Collector S Shanavas.
The release also states that samples were collected from the mortal remains of the deceased lady and the results returned positive, the statement released on Thursday (May 21) night said.
State Health Secretary Rajan Khobragade told PTI that three other people who travelled with the elderly woman in a car are under quarantine.
"She got permission to reach the Kerala border on May 22. But she arrived by car on May 20 itself along with three other people. They all have been put under quarantine,” he said.
Upon realising that the woman had started showing discomfort when they were near Perinthalmanna in Malappuram district, her son picked her up in an ambulance and got her admitted at a hospital in Chavakkad of Thrissur district, stated the release. Both the woman’s son and the ambulance driver are now under observation.
According to the statement, the woman was already under treatment for diabetes, blood pressure and breathing difficulty. Maharashtra, from where the woman returned to Kerala, has the highest number of COVID-19 positive people in the country, with over 41,600 people being infected.
Kerala has reported four deaths previously of people who were tested positive for COVID-19, including a four-month-old baby. This also includes the death of 71-year-old Mahe native, who was under treatment in a Kerala hospital.
The state had also been witnessing a spike in the number of people being infected with COVID-19. The majority of these people are either people returning from foreign countries or other states. Including the 73-year-old woman, a total of 692 people have so far turned positive for COVID-19 in Kerala.
(With PTI inputs)
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