• Fourteen new patients bring total to 663, active cases 502
• Community sampling starts to identify COVID-19 infected patients around isolated areas
• SIS identifies 13 COVID-19 clusters, 4 still active
• Police seek public support to contain clusters 
• Public asked to report new arrivals in neighbourhoods 
• Police to be given PCR tests

The Government yesterday began PCR tests for community samples in several isolated streets in Colombo for COVID-19, as 14 more people tested positive for the virus, pushing the total of confirmed cases to 663. 

According to the Epidemiology Unit of the Ministry of Health, 502 COVID-19 infected patients remain in care as of last evening. Seventeen patients were released after recovering from the virus yesterday, bringing the total number to recoveries to 154, while another 187 remain hospitalised as suspected COVID-19 cases. Seven patients have succumbed to the virus so far.

According to Chief Medical Officer of Health (Colombo) Dr. Ruwan Wijeyamuni, health authorities have begun testing residents living in the periphery of several isolated streets in Colombo for COVID-19 at random. 

Speaking at the National Operations Centre for the Prevention of COVID-19 (NOCPOC), Police Spokesman DIG Ajith Rohana said that persons who are addicted to narcotics have been identified as carriers of the disease. 

DIG Rohana pointed out that 14 such persons were identified from the Ja-Ela, Suduwella area, and that it was this identification that led to the creation of several COVID-19 clusters. State Intelligence Service (SIS) has identified 13 COVID-19 clusters countrywide to date, he stated, pointing out that 4 of the 13 clusters were still active. 

«Three out of the four clusters seems to be declining, we need the public›s assistance to control the situation,» he said. He called on the public to report to the nearest Police station if new residents or tenants from other districts arrive in their locality, as a precautionary measure to stop the spread of the virus. DIG Rohana also called on the public to strictly adhere to curfew regulations and public health guidelines, and to only leave home for the most essential reasons when curfew is relaxed. 

«The IGP has had discussions with the Director General of Health Services to subject Police officers who come into contact with COVID-19 patients to PCR testing, as Police officers work in high-risk situations when they accompany PHIs or others to carry out contact tracing and other duties,» SP Jaliya Senarathne said in a video released by the Police Media Unit.

Police Headquarters has advised all Police stations on health and safety procedures to follow when dealing with high-risk COVID-19 related duties. SP Senarathne said that all Police stations have been issued with the necessary Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). 

Intelligence officials brief Cabinet on success of COVID-19 activities