Coronavirus claims ninth death in Karachi

KARACHI: One person died due to Coronavirus in Karachi on Wednesday, raising the death toll due to the viral infectious disease to nine in Sindh, health authorities in Sindh said adding that 33 more people were tested positive for the disease, bringing the total number of infected people in Sindh to 709.

“There is one death due to COVID-19 in Karachi on Wednesday. The 59-year-old patient was a resident of Karachi and was brought to the hospital on 19th March after his return from Saudi Arabia where he was tested positive the same day.

The patient had a history of Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) and was on ventilator since the first day. This brings the total number of deaths in Sindh to nine,” a spokesperson for the Sindh health department said on Wednesday.

The health official said as many as 33 more people were tested positive for Coronavirus in Karachi, bringing the total number of Coronavirus cases to 709 in the province including 307 in Karachi.

“There are 128 Coronavirus patients in Hyderabad, 265 in Sukkur, seven in Larkana and one each at Dadu and Jacobabad. So far, 55 patients have recovered in Sindh while 646 are still under treatment, either at their homes or at the isolation centers at various public and private hospitals”, the health official added.On the other hand, Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah said 376 people who were tested positive for the coroanvirus, had acquired the infection locally, which constitutes 53 percent of the total cases, which are 709, and decided to prolong the lockdown conditions in the province till April 14.

This emerged in the meeting of Coronavirus Taskforce held under the chairmanship of Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah here at CM House.

The meeting was attended by provincial ministers, Syed Nasir Shah, Dr Azra Pechuho, Saeed Ghani, Imtiaz Shaikh, Adviser Murtaza Wahab, CM Coordinator Haris Gazdar, Chief Secretary Mumtaz Shah, DG Rangers Major General Omar Bokhari, IGP Sindh Mushtaq Maher, Brigadier Sami of Corps 5, Home Secretary Usman Chachar, Dr Bari of Indus Hospital and Dr Faisal of Aga Khan, Focal Person of Health Dept Zahid Abbasi. The chief minister was also told that the government hospitals have reported 1,874 pneumonia cases, of them 124 were tested for corona and private hospitals reported 702 cases and 27 of them were also tested. The government is also focusing on severe pneumonia cases so that the threat of COVID-19 could be tracked properly.

The Sindh government has screened 57,562 people, of them 6,578 are suspects. The health department has taken 6,578 samples, of them 676 have been declared as positive while 160 results are awaited. The chief minister also participated in the prime minister’s meeting on Coronavirus issue through video link.

The chief minister said that if the federal government was opening flight operations, then it would have to develop a SOP of testing each and every passenger at the airport and make necessary arrangements for their quarantine.

The chief minister brushed aside the impression that he had also banned goods transport. “No and not at all, the good transport operation is in progress throughout the lockdown,” he said.

Shah said that he has already taken necessary measures for food security. “The Sindh Food department has started procurement of wheat from last Monday and we have set a target of procuring 1.4 million tons of wheat,” he said.He said that the business and industry related to medicines and food was in operation. “Yes, there must be some problems because we are passing through an extra ordinary situation but simultaneously we keep solving the problems, if and when, they are pointed out,” he said. The chief minister supported the proposal of continuing lock down till April 14.