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Saturday, 5 December 2020 01:18 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
By Shailendree Wickrama Adittiya
The dual COVID-19 cluster that emerged from Peliyagoda and Divulapitiya yesterday expanded to 23,005, with the detection of 517 patients linked to the Peliyagoda COVID-19 cluster.
The Epidemiology Unit states that 26,559 COVID-19 patients have been identified in the island to date, including four new cases found yesterday that are not linked to the dual cluster. This includes 1,519 Sri Lankan returnees from abroad, 950 Navy personnel and their contacts, 651 persons linked to the Kandakadu cluster, and 118 foreigners.
Of the total cases, 6,992 persons are currently under medical care at 58 treatment centres. This includes 508 persons at the Bingiriya Treatment Centre, 475 persons at the Punani Treatment Centre, 366 persons at the Neville Fernando Hospital, and 344 persons at the Kandakadu Treatment Centre.
Hospitals are also monitoring 390 persons suspected of having COVID-19.
Deputy Director General of Public Health Services Dr. Hemantha Herath yesterday said that an increase in patients identified as well as their ages and other health conditions has led to an increased need for intensive care. “What was one or two [ICU beds] prior to this, increased to between four and seven in the past month. Today, 12 to 13 beds are being used,” he said, adding that arrangements have been made to increase the ICU capacity as required.
According to the Epidemiology Unit, the number of COVID-19 patients identified from the Colombo District is 10,282. They added that 6,305 persons from the Gampaha District, 1,162 persons from the Kalutara District, and 452 persons from the Kandy District have tested positive for the virus to date.
Given the rise of COVID-19 patients in the Kandy District, a decision was made to close schools within the Kandy city limits until Monday (7 December). However, Central Province Governor Lalith U. Gamage yesterday stated that, following discussions with relevant officials, it had been decided that schools will remain closed for a further seven days.
A decision will be taken in a week’s time on the reopening of schools based on the situation.
On Thursday, 628 COVID-19 patients were detected in the island. This includes 402 from the Colombo District, 56 from Gampaha, 40 from Kalutara, and 34 from Ratnapura.
A total of 104 of Colombo’s cases were detected from Welikada, while 52 were detected from Colombo 9, 49 were detected from the Colombo Municipal Council, and 35 were detected from Colombo 14.
Meanwhile, the country’s COVID-19 recoveries rose to 19,438 with hospitals discharging 406 persons yesterday. This includes 105 persons from the Punani Treatment Centre, 31 persons from the Panideniya Treatment Centre, and 31 persons from the Neville Fernando Hospital.
According to the Health Promotion Bureau (HPB), 876,044 PCR tests have been carried out to date. The HPB adds that 13,598 tests were carried out on Thursday (3 December).
Regarding an incident of an individual in Atalugama spitting at health officials who attempted to take him to a COVID-19 treatment centre, National Operations Centre for the Prevention of the COVID-19 Outbreak (NOCPCO) Head Lt. Gen. Shavendra Silva yesterday said the Police were investigating the incident.
“When four patients were identified, I said that if persons from the area do not cooperate more, the situation can worsen, because on the first day itself we saw some opposition from residents of Atalugama. Now, what started as four patients has become 329 patients,” he said.
The NOCPCO Head added that isolation in such areas will have to be extended if residents continue to behave in a manner that puts others at risk of contracting COVID-19. He went on to say that persons in other isolated areas were cooperating with health officials, especially those in isolated housing schemes. According to Lt. Gen. Shavendra Silva, random testing was carried out on 300 persons in the past two days in a housing scheme, and only four persons tested positive for the virus. He said that the authorities hoped the housing schemes can be reopened soon.
A decision is likely to be made on Sunday on the isolation of other areas, after the daily detection of patients is reviewed.
In terms of the arrival of Sri Lankans from overseas, Lt. Gen. Silva said 592 persons returned to the island on Thursday, mainly from Jordan and Qatar. Yesterday, 345 persons were expected, mainly from Kuwait, and 329 persons from Ethiopia are expected to arrive today.
He added that between 300 and 600 persons are expected to arrive every day, with arrivals from Bahrain expected on 8 December, and 580 persons from Saudi Arabia and Malaysia expected on 9 December.
According to the NOCPCO, 6,436 persons are currently undergoing quarantine in 59 centres. Meanwhile, the Health Ministry stated that Health Minister Pavithra Wanniarachchi, Primary Health Care, Epidemiology and Coronavirus Disease Control State Minister Dr. Sudarshani Fernandopulle, and Tourism Minister Prasanna Ranatunga, on Thursday, discussed the reopening of the airport for foreign tourists in order to strengthen the country’s tourism industry.
Officials from the Epidemiology Unit, Airport and Aviation Services, Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority and Tourism Ministry, as well as hotel industry stakeholders also took part in the discussion.
According to the Health Ministry, a joint committee was appointed to prepare a basic plan for safety guidelines on strengthening the tourism industry and reopening the airport.
