15-year-old among 7 COVID fatalities reported on Tuesday
Death toll reaches 183 and virus tally crosses 38,000 mark
COLOMBO – Sri Lanka announced seven more COVID-19 related fatalities including a 15-year-old cancer patient on Tuesday (22), as the death toll reached 183 and the novel coronavirus tally increased to 38,058 with 427 new cases confirmed during the course of the day.
The Department of Government Information in two separate statements announcing the deaths, reported five fatalities on Tuesday morning and two more later in the day. The five deceased identified in the morning included a 68-year-old male inmate of the Welikada Prison who had died of COVID-pneumonia at the Prison Hospital; a 55-year-old male from Colombo 15 who had died of COVID-pneumonia and acute kidney failure at the General Hospital Colombo; a 77-year-old male from Dharga Town, Aluthgama, and a 63-year-old female from Maggona in the Kalutara district, both of who had died at their respective residences of COVID-related blood poisoning and heart failure; and an 83-year-old male from Colombo 10, who had been diagnosed as COVID-19 positive and died of COVID-19 positive at the Base Hospital, Homagama.
The two deaths reported late Tuesday included a 15-year-old cancer patient from Apeksha Hospital, Maharagama, who had died of COVID-pneumonia, blood poisoning and acute leukemia at the Infectious Diseases Hospital, where he was transferred to upon being diagnosed as COVID-19 positive, and a 72-year-old female from Colombo 7, who had died at her residence of COVID- pneumonia
The statements said Director General of Health Services, Dr. Asela Gunawardena, had confirmed the deaths to be COVID-19 related, taking the COVID fatality count to 183
One hundred and seventy deaths have now been officially recorded since October 24, many of them at home and several on admission to hospitals, since the emergence of a new and more virulent strain of the virus in a new cluster in Minuwangoda, with the apparel factory in the area as the epicentre earlier in the month. Since then the cluster has seen sub-clusters in several parts of the country, including a prison cluster, with the largest case load reported from the Peliyagoda fish market.
Tuesday’s confirmations take Sri Lanka’s novel coronavirus count to 38,058 with 29,300 being deemed recovered and discharged under the new health ministry guidelines, and 8,577 receiving treatment at various designated hospitals across the country.
The Department of Government Information said all 427 cases confirmed Tuesday were linked to Peliyagoda/prison cluster, which has now expanded to 34,381 cases.
Meanwhile, health authorities on Tuesday afternoon isolated, with immediately and until further notice, the Maliban Biscuit factory and its head office in Ratmalana, after an unspecified number of COVID-19 cases were detected within the factory premises.
National Operations Centre for Prevention of COVID-19 Outbreak, announcing the isolation status said the number of patients would be determined by the health authorities once the results of the PCR tests are confirmed.
The Maliban Group, which employs over 1,250 direct employees and several more working through manpower recruitment agencies, reported over 25 COVID-19 confirmations on Monday (21).
Separately, Police spokesman Ajith Rohana announced on Tuesday, random Rapid Antigen Tests will be carried out at 11 exit points of the Western Province covering expressways, trains and buses, beginning Wednesday (23). He said 17 COVID-19 patients were identified in last few days from the random tests carried out at four exit points.
-ENCL