DHAKA, March 17, 2020 (BSS) – The total number of coronavirus (COVID-19) infected persons rose to 10 in the country as the Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research (IEDCR) today said two more persons have been diagnosed positive for the virus.
“Both the new coronavirus patients are male. One of them was in institutional quarantine and the other was in a hospital after getting infected coming in contact of a foreign returnee,” IEDCR Director Professor Dr Meerjady Sabrina Flora said at a press briefing at IEDCR office at city’s Mohakhali area.
She came up with the information a day after she disclosed detection of another three persons with COVID-19.
IEDCR Principal Scientific Officer Dr ASM Alamgir was also present at the briefing, among others.
The IERCD director said if the returnees from different country and those coming in contact with them had remain in home quarantine strictly, then no virus could have been spread out.
On March 16, the chief of the country’s only disease monitoring institution said they had detected three more corona-positive patients, of which two were under 10 children and the third victim was an adult female.
On March 14, IEDCR detected two people with COVID-19 after their return home from Germany and Italy.
The IEDCR chief, however, said the first three patients who were detected with coronavirus last week by now were declared “cleared” after their recovery in isolation under medical observation and they returned home.
“As I do every day, I’m discouraging all kinds of public gatherings, meetings and rallies. People also should avoid public transport and try to maintain one-meter distance from one another,” Flora said.
The IEDCR chief reiterated that the suspected people should not go to IEDCR office as no samples would be collected there.
“If needed, one should inform us through the hotline numbers, which are operated by doctors. We will collect samples from the person’s home,” she said.
Flora said her office has tested 36 samples in last 24 hours, of which two new cases were detected. Sixteen people are in isolation and 43 are in institutional quarantine.
“We have kept 150 ICU beds ready in hospitals across the country for coronavirus patients,” she added.
Meanwhile the government yesterday (March 16) decided to keep closed all educational institutions across the country from March 18 to March 31 to prevent the coronavirus spread.
From January 21 to March 16, IEDCR received a total of 34,747 calls, of which 25,135 were related to COVID-19. In last 24 hours, IEDCR received 4205 calls, of which 4164 were related to COVID-19.
A total of 6, 16,075 passengers were screened at different ports in the country, of which 3, 05,788 were screened at three international airports. A total of 7,683 people were screened at Chattogram and Mongla sea ports from January 21 to March 16.