Several areas isolated as quarantine curfew to be lifted Monday
COLOMBO – The quarantine curfew imposed in the Western Province is set to be lifted at 5:00 a.m. Monday (9), but 22 areas, in the Colombo, Gampaha and Kalutara districts in the Western Province have been place under isolation until further notice.
A statement from the Government Department of Information on Sunday (8), announcing the relaxing of the quarantine curfew, said several apartment complexes in Central Colombo identified as high risk areas for the spread of COVID-19 have also been placed under isolation with the residents asked to strictly stay indoors and avoid any interactions, even with their neighbours.
The statement said several areas in the Kegalle and Kurunegala districts in the North Western and Sabaragamuwa Provinces have also been placed under isolation, due to high incidence of virus spread detected in these areas.
Areas under isolation in the Colombo district include Mattakuliya, Modera, Bloemandhal, Kotahena, Grandpass, Foreshore, Adirippu Road, Maligawatte, Dematagoda, Wellampitiya, Borella and Keselwatte police divisions, while areas in the Gampaha district include Wattala, Peliyagoda, Kadawatha, Ragama, Negombo, Pamumugama, Ja-Ela and Sapugaskanda police divisions.
In Kalutara distric, the areas under isolation include Horana, Ingiriya and Wekada West, while Kurunegala Municipal area and Kuliyapitiya police division in the Kurunegala district and Mawanella and Ruwanwella police divisions in the Kegalle districts have also been placed under isolation.
Army chief Lt. Gen. Shavendra Silva attributed the decision to isolate large swathes of Colombo and other areas to the high prevalence of the novel coronavirus and increased fatalities reported from these areas.
Although under isolation, he said food suppliers including mobile bread sellers would be allowed to operate in these areas, but said strict isolation would be observed at Mehthsanda Sevana and Minijaya Sevana Flats in Mattakkuliya, Ranmuthu Sevana Flats in Modara, Muwadora Uyana Flats in Grandpass, Sirisara Uyana in Dematagoda and NHS Flats in Maligawatte
Silva told a private television channel some of the home deaths reported were from the flats placed under isolation.
Sri Lanka on Saturday (7) recorded four deaths, two of them at home, taking the number of COVID-19 related deaths at home to 10, and Sri Lanka’s overall COVID fatalities to 34.
Meanwhile, the Department of Government Information in its daily virus update, said 283 new cases had been confirmed by 6:40 p.m. on Sunday (8), all of them directly linked to the Minuwangoda/Peliyagoda cluster, which has now expanded to 10,220. The confirmations take Sri Lanka’s novel coronavirus tally to 13,702, with 8,285 being deemed recovered and discharged under the new health ministry guidelines that don’t require multiple PCR tests, and 5,383 receiving treatment at various designated hospitals across the country.
-ENCL