COVID-19 numbers marginally come down in TN, 448 persons test positive

22 persons from Maharashtra and two from Qatar who returned to Tamil Nadu have tested positive on Thursday.
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For the first time in 10 days Tamil Nadu reported less than 500 COVID-19 cases. With 449 new cases on Thursday, Tamil Nadu’s COVID-19 total stands at 9,674. Three hundred-and- sixty-three patients are from Chennai and with this, the district has 5,637 individuals infected by the novel coronavirus.

Twenty-four foreign and other state returnees (22 from Maharashtra and two from Qatar) have tested positive on Thursday. The passengers have returned home to Karur, Madurai, Sivagangai, Thoothukudi and Tirunelveli districts.

A total of 1,275 passengers have arrived in the state between May 9 and 14 of which 918 have tested negative. Nine have tested positive and 348 are under process.

At a press meet on Thursday, Minister of Health and Family Welfare C Vijayabaskar said, “So far six flights have arrived in Chennai and one in Trichy. They have all been tested and quarantined. In one flight, four persons were positive and in another five tested positive. We have tested people who are coming on ship as well and they are all negative. We have formed a 400 member group to test people coming by train.”

Since May 4, with the emergence of the Koyambedu wholesale market cluster, the state has been recording a streak of over 500 positive cases every day. This number came down on May 14.

With 64 patients discharged on Thursday, the state presently has 2,240 recoveries.

Two persons have died in Tamil Nadu on Thursday and with this, the tally of COVID-19 casualties stands at 66. The bulletin issued by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare notes the cause of death to be respiratory failure/pneumonia for one and respiratory failure/acute respiratory distress syndrome for the other.

A 43-year-old man from Chennai with chronic kidney disease who was on dialysis and chronic HCV infection and systemic hypertension was undergoing treatment at Rajiv Gandhi Government General hospital (RGGGH) since May 8 died due to respiratory failure or pneumonia on May 14 at 12.30 am.  The second is a 45-year-old woman from Chennai who had diabetes mellitus, systemic hypertension and hypothyroidism. She was undergoing treatment since May 7 and died due to respiratory failure/acute respiratory distress syndrome on May 13 at 10.00 am.

Vijayabaskar requested cooperation from people to help curb the spread of the virus. “The government on one hand is taking strict action but on the other hand, we need the cooperation of the public."

Explaining that new cases are being reported from districts that have not had any new infections in over 20 days owing to the return of passengers from other places, the Minister stressed that no one should be stigmatised for testing positive for the novel coronavirus. “Sivaganga district has not reported any new COVID-19 cases in the last 23 days. However, on Thursday, someone from Mumbai came back to the district and tested positive. Only coronavirus is our enemy, not the person. We have to ensure that the infected person doesn't transfer the virus to his family or to the public,” he said.

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