Coronavirus Updates

President Trump and first lady test positive for COVID-19

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump have tested positive for the coronavirus, the president tweeted early Friday.

Trump’s positive test comes just hours after the White House announced that senior aide Hope Hicks came down with the virus after traveling with the president several times this week. Trump was last seen by reporters returning to the White House on Thursday evening and looked to be in good health. Trump is 74 years old, putting him at higher risk of serious complications from a virus that has now killed more than 200,000 people nationwide.

"Tonight, @FLOTUS and I tested positive for COVID-19. We will begin our quarantine and recovery process immediately. We will get through this TOGETHER!" Trump tweeted.

Trump announced late Thursday that he and first lady Melania Trump were beginning a “quarantine process” after Hicks came down with the virus, though it wasn’t clear what that entailed. It can take days for an infection to be detectable by a test.

The diagnosis marks a major blow for a president who has been trying desperately to convince the American public that the worst of the pandemic is behind them even as cases continue to rise with less than four months before Election Day. And it stands as the most serious known public health scare encountered by any sitting American president in recent history.

Symptoms of COVID-19 can include fever, cough and breathing trouble. Most people develop only mild symptoms. But some people, usually those with other medical complications, develop more severe symptoms, including pneumonia, which can be fatal.

In an interview with Fox News host Sean Hannity on Thursday, Trump said he was awaiting results of a COVID-19 test. “Whether we quarantine or whether we have it, I don’t know,” he said, adding that first lady Melania Trump was also awaiting results.

Hicks traveled with the president multiple times this week, including aboard Marine One, the presidential helicopter, and on Air Force One to a rally in Minnesota on Wednesday, and aboard Air Force One to Tuesday night’s first presidential debate in Cleveland.

Trump had consistently played down concerns about being personally vulnerable to contracting COVID-19, even after White House staff and allies were exposed and sickened.

“I felt no vulnerability whatsoever,” he said told reporters back in May.

He has instead encouraged governors to reopen their states and tried to focus the nation’s attention on efforts to revive the economy — not a growing death toll — as he seeks another four-year term.

Some studies suggest COVID-19 patients who are obese may be at higher risk of being seriously sickened by the virus, although it’s unclear whether that’s because they are more likely to have other health conditions such as heart disease or diabetes. In his 2019 physical, Trump met the technical threshold for obesity.

The news was sure to rattle an already shaken nation still grappling with how to safely reopen while avoiding further spikes. The White House has access to near-unlimited resources, including a constant supply of quick-result tests, and still failed to keep the president safe, raising questions about how the rest of the country will be able to protect its workers, students and the public as businesses and schools reopen.

Trump, the vice president and other senior staff have been tested for COVID-19 daily since two people who work at the White House complex tested positive in early May, prompting the White House to step up precautions. Everyone who comes into contact with the president also receives a quick-result test.

Yet since the early days of the pandemic, experts have questioned the health and safety protocols at the White House and asked why more wasn’t being done to protect the commander in chief. Trump continued to shake hands with visitors long after public health officials were warning against it and he initially resisted being tested. He has been reluctant to practice his own administration’s social distancing guidelines for fear of looking weak, including refusing under almost all circumstances to wear a mask in public.

Trump is not the only major world leader known to have contracted the virus. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson spent a week in the hospital, including three nights in intensive care, where he was given oxygen and watched around the clock by medical workers. German Chancellor Angela Merkel self-isolated after a doctor who gave her a vaccination tested positive for the virus, and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau worked from home after his wife fell ill.

The White House got its first COVID-19 scare in early March when at least three people who later tested positive came in close proximity to the president at his private Florida club. That included members of the Brazilian president’s delegation, including the Brazilian chargé d’affaires, who sat at Trump’s dinner table.

In mid-March, as the virus continued to spread across the country, the White House began taking the temperature of everyone entering the White House complex, and in April, it began administering rapid COVID-19 tests to all those in close proximity to the president, with staffers being tested about once a week. The frequent tests gave some staff the false impression the complex was safe from the virus, and few, as a result, followed recommended safety protocols, including wearing masks.

But then the bubble broke.

On May 7, the White House announced that a member of the military serving as one of the president’s personal valets tested positive for the virus, followed a day later by a positive diagnosis for Vice President Mike Pence’s press secretary.

Even then, Trump said he was “not worried” about the virus spreading in the White House. But officials again stepped up safety protocols for the complex, directing everyone entering the West Wing to wear a mask.

“I think it’s very well contained, actually,” Trump told reporters on May 11.

But by June, concerns at the White House had dissipated once again, with few staffers bothering with masks even as more and more people tested positive for the virus, including campaign staffers preparing for a Tulsa rally and Secret Service agents.

On July 3rd, Kimberly Guilfoyle, who is dating Trump’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., tested positive in South Dakota before an Independence Day fireworks show at Mount Rushmore. Guilfoyle, a former Fox News personality who works for Trump’s campaign, had not flown on Air Force One and had not been in direct contact with the president, though she had had contact with numerous top GOP officials.

In July, Trump's national security adviser, Robert O’Brien, tested positive.

While there is currently no evidence that Trump is seriously ill, the positive test also raises questions about what would happen if he were to become incapacitated due to illness. The Constitution’s 25th Amendment spells out the procedures under which a president can declare themselves “unable to discharge the powers and duties” of the presidency. If he were to make that call, Trump would transmit a written note to the Senate president pro tempore, Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif. Pence would serve as acting president until Trump transmitted “a written declaration to the contrary.”

The vice president and a majority of either the Cabinet or another body established by law, can also declare the president unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, in which case Pence would “immediately assume the powers and duties of the office as Acting President” until Trump could provide a written declaration to the contrary.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/top-white-house-official-tests-003056372.html

Seventy Covid 19 positive cases now in the Minuwangoda, Divulapitiya and Veyangoda areas – officials

ECONOMYNEXT – The Covid Prevention Task Force is investigating three-clusters of possible Covid patients related to the dioscovery of a patient in Divulapitiya and as of now 68 cases have been discovered in these areas officials said.

Colonel Media of the Sri Lanka Army Col Vijitha Hettiarachchi told EconomyNext today the clusters are, the Brandix Cluster, where the patient was working, the Gampaha Hospital where she was warded for a respiratory ailment and her home village in the Divulapitiya area.

“We have tested 80 people who had direct contact with the first patient and 68 have been shown as positive for Covid 19,” Hettiarachchi who speaks for the National Operations Centre for Prevention of Covid 19 said.

The total from this outbreak is 70 with the first patient and her teenaged daughter, he said.

“We hope to do around one thousand PCR tests in these cluster areas today,” he added.

The towns of Minuwangoda, Divulapitiya and Veyangoda are under Police curfews he added.

(Colombo, October 5, 2020)

Sri Lanka Covid-19 chief urges people to avoid non-essential travel in next 72hours

ECONOMYNEXT – People should avoid non-essential travel and limit movements to job-related activities in the next 72 hours, Sri Lanka’s army chief said as authorities scramble to track the index case of the latest Coronavirus infection.

General Shavendra Silva who heads Sri Lanka’s Anti-Covid task force said the daughter of the infected person found from Divulapitiya had tested positive so far, but the rest of the family tested negative.

“No one should go around unnecessarily, except for work and essential purposes in the next 72 hours,” General Silva told Sri Lanka’s Derana Television.

“We are awaiting the results of about 150 PCR tests and we will know more.”

General Silva said authorities are trying to find the source of the infection. The towns of Divulapitiya, Minuwangoda and Veyangoda are under indefinite curfew.

General Silva said persons who visited these areas, as well as those who visited the Brandix factory in Minuwangoda to meet employees should be careful.



“People from many areas had come to meet friends and relatives,” General Silva said. “They know who they are, and they should be careful.”

Sri Lanka’s chief epidemiologist Sudath Samaraweera had also urged the public to remain at home until authorities trace and test associates of the patient, which was the first to be found from the community in two months.

“It can be in the community,” Samaraweera told reporters Sunday. “Do not leave your homes unnecessarily. If anyone ventures out follow social distancing and wear masks.”

He urged workplaces to inform health authorities if any respiratory diseases were found to be spreading among staff.

“If there is a spread of respiratory disease in any institution, with Covid-19 related symptoms like fever or cough, please inform the public health inspector and medical services in the area,” he said.

“We can test to check whether it is Covid-19.”

He said public support is needed to quickly control the situation.

Sri Lanka is one of few countries in the world that had successfully controlled the spread of the disease. The Health Ministry said up to October 04, 3,402 persons had been confirmed and 13 had died.



Sri Lanka has tracing and quarantine mechanisms which are deployed quickly with an island-wide network of public health inspectors and medical officers who battle tropical disease outbreaks on an ongoing basis.

Sri Lanka’s health authorities have also urged people in the Gampaha district who show fever-related symptoms to get a Coronavirus PCR test from the nearest hospital.

Authorities are scrambling to find the index case, where the infections had started. Another person, a foreign returnee and therefore an index case, had also tested positive in Habaraduwa in Galle.

Test samples have been collected from lose associates of the infected line supervisor of the Minuwangoda factory as well as fellow travellers of the company bus she used, General Silva said.

Results are due Monday morning, he said.

Also tested were 33 workers at the factory who had undergone medical treatment in recent days with cough and other symptoms, he said.

The person was found when the Gampaha Hospital where she was given medical treatment tested her before discharge.

A total of 1,400 workers at the factory will also be tested today and tomorrow, he said.



The 39-year old apparel factory worker was the first Covid-19 patient to be identified after almost two months.

Sri Lanka has also closed schools and urged people not to go to parties.

Police Deputy Inspector General Ajith Rohana said 10 curfew breakers had been arrested overnight.

But people are allowed to travel through the curfew areas, but they cannot stop to pick up or drop passengers, he said. (Colombo/Oct05/2020)

COVID-19 would’ve been present in the community: MRI Sri Lanka

ECONOMYNEXT – The novel coronavirus has been in the community for the past few months and the risk of spread has now increased, Sri Lanka’s Medical Research Institute (MRI) officials said.

MRI Director Dr Jayaruwan Banadara told a private television news network this morning that the virus has been in the community for the past few months outside the clusters identified by the health officials.

“There is a danger in this situation,” Bandara told Derana TV.



“From January to now this virus has been present in the community somehow,” he said.

Bandara said it is unlikely that the COVID-19 patient found in Divulapitiya yesterday after two months of no new cases reported outside the identified clusters if there was no patients already in the community.

“How else could we have found a patient now?” Bandara said.

He further said citizens should be aware of the situation and should start following the health guidelines issued by the health authorities.

“We do not know whether these patients or any of their contacts came to our environment or not,” he added.



Sixty-nine direct contacts of yesterday’s patient tested positive for COVID-19 today.

All 69 patients are coworkers of the apparel factory where the patient from Divulapitiya worked.

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A 16-year-old daughter of the Divulapitiya patient also tested positive for the virus, while the patient’s husband and other children tested negative.

“All the citizens must understand that now is not the time for any protests or other activities but to go back to prevention methods we followed the first time around. We don’t know where we’ll find the next patient,” Bandara said.

Meanwhile, the Public Health Inspectors Union said the garment factory has over 1,300 employees, of whom over 700 individuals have been directly associating with the patient.



PHI Union Secretary M Balasooriya told EconomyNext that more PCR tests are being conducted on these workers.

Balasooriya added that children and academic staff of the daughter’s school will also be directed to PCR tests today.

“Her daughter is in the 11th grade and there will be a special seminar for all students and teachers in her class conducted by health officials. We will also perform PCR tests on them,” he said.

The patient was admitted to hospital on October 3 by the apparel company due to difficulties in breathing.

“She had been suffering with these symptoms for a certain period,” PHI Union Chairman Upul Rohana said.

“We have also identified several other coworkers who were suffering from the same symptoms. We urge everyone who associated her within the past week to inform the relevant PHIs immediately.”

Balasooriya said several employees of the factory had gone to their home on vacation.

“These employees are from Jaffna, Ampara, Galle, Kurunegala, Anuradhapura, Polonnaruwa and many other districts. Some have been identified and directed to self-quarantine but there are many more we have yet to identify.”



“We have found two individuals from Kurunegela with symptoms. We have sent them to Kurunegala hospital for further studies,” he added.

Sri Lanka’s confirmed COVID-19 cases increased to 3,471 with the new patients discovered today.

Health officials are currently tracing the contacts of the Divulapitiya patient under three identified clusters: the Brandix cluster where the patient worked, the

Gampaha hospital where she was warded for a respiratory ailment and her hometown in the Divulapitiya area. (Colombo/Oct05/ 2020)

Officials say don’t panic as number infected by newest Covid cluster climbs to 84

ECONOMYNEXT-The Health authorities are reassuring the public saying there is no reason to panic and start clearing out the shelves in supermarkets because the current outbreak of Covid 19 is in a small area of the country.

The country’s Chief Epidemiologist Dr Sudath Samaraweera told reporters today the restriction on movements of goods and people are in a small area in the country and “there is no need to curb movements in other areas.”



“We don’t see a necessity to restrict the movements further. We hope that we can bring back normalcy as quickly as possible among the general public,” he said

Therefore, he said, that there is no need for the general public to be scared or to panic and start buying everything in supermarkets in order to stock goods at home.

Supermarket chains told EconomyNext this afternoon “there is a higher than an average number of people stocking up,” on supplies today.

“We have experience now on how to provide essential services at a time like this, so there is no need to panic and gather goods as people get jammed in such situation which is not good at the moment,” Samaraweera said.



Quarantine curfews which were upgraded to Police Curfews this afternoon are in force in the Minuwangoda, Divulapitiya and Veyangoda Police divisions after a community outbreak of Covid 19 was confirmed late Saturday night.

Around 84 Covid 19 positive patients have emerged from a cluster forming in these three areas centred on a large apparel manufacturing plant in Minuwangoda.

The first person discovered with the infection is a 39-year old Supervisor in the plant a mother of three children. Her oldest child, a 16-year-old girl has tested positive although her husband and the younger children are negative.

As of this afternoon a reported 84 people, mostly workers at the same factory have tested positive and some have been hospitalized in various parts of the country where they have gone home on leave.


Two of them are warded in the Jaffna Teaching Hospital, two at the Kurunegala General Hospital and one in the Moneragala hospital. Officials said these employees had gone home on sick leave.

One person has tested positive in Jaela, officials said.

Officials at the National Operations Centre for the Prevention of Covid 19 said that Military Intelligence has been deployed for contact tracing.

No plan to enforce countrywide curfew – Director-General Information

ECONOMYNEXT – The government has no plan and no need to enforce a countrywide curfew, the Director-General of Government Information Nalaka Kaluwewa said.

In a statement released this evening, Kaluwewa said that rumours circulating on Social Media that the country was going into an island-wide curfew were false.

“We urge the public to be calm and exercise discretion,” Kaluwewa said reassuring the public that the government will keep them informed of the situation as it develops.

All decisions taken by the government which the public should know about will be publicized through all official channels of communication, he said.

At present there is no plan to close down any institutions or impose general curfews, he added.

(Colombo October 5, 2020)

As of now...

Coronavirus Cases:
35,777,158

Deaths:
1,049,693

Recovered:
26,907,314

264,309 new cases world wide higher than previous day.

4,259 more deaths higher than previous 24 hours.

India (59,893), USA (41,576) & Brazil (25,210) are the three countries with highest number of new cases that drives the new cases.

India (886), Argentina (450) & USA (421) were the countries with highest new deaths for last 24 hours.

Coronavirus Cases:
36,041,783

Deaths:
1,054,604

Recovered:
27,145,526

311,613 new cases world wide higher than previous day.

5,553 more deaths higher than previous 24 hours.

India (72,106), USA (43,660) & Brazil (30,454) are the three countries with highest number of new cases that drives the new cases.

India (991), Brazil (798) & USA (790) were the countries with highest new deaths for last 24 hours.

Sri Lanka imposes curfew in Ja-Ela, Kandana to contain Covid-19 spread

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka has imposed curfew in Ja-Ela and Kandana police divisions until further notice the state information office said.

Overnight the total confirmed in a new cluster linked to an apparel factory increased to 832 persons.

Curfew is already in force in Minuwangoda, Divulapitiya and Veyandgoda areas.

Sri Lanka has asked resident of Gampaha district to stay at home and report if they get fever or cough symptoms.

Visitors to the Brandix factory had also been asked to report any symptoms and seek treatment from a state hospital.

The total confirmed patients in Sri Lanka was 4,252 by October 06 according to health ministry data. (Colombo/Oct07/2020)

PCR tests being conducted at Brandix head office in Colombo

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka is conducting PCR tests at the Brandix head quarters in Colombo 03, the National Operations Centre for the Prevention of COVID-19 (NOCPOC) said.
The human resource team at the Brandix factory in Minuwangoda where a fresh cluster of the pandemic has broken out, is said to have visited the head office.

The tests are still going on and no one has tested positive yet, a spokesman said.
From October 06 to 07 a total of 830 patients were recorded from the Divulapitiya Brandix cluster.
Total confirmed cases for the day were 739 patients, 729 were reported from the Minuwangoda Brandix cluster, five among the returnees from UAE, one returnee from Japan, three Indian seafarers and 1 returnee from the Maldives.

Sri Lanka has conducted 950 PCR tests on 6 October and 2100 samples are pending to be tested.

(Colombo/Oct07/2020)

Brandix cluster passes 1,000 confirmed cases in Sri Lanka’s biggest COVID-19 outbreak yet

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka is battling a resurgence of the COVID-19 pandemic, with a fresh cluster that emerged over the weekend around an apparel factory now moving past 1,000 confirmed cases – the single largest yet in the island.

The number of COVID-19 positive cases detected at the Brandix plant in Minuwangoda, Gampaha, rose to 1,022 a short while ago, with 190 new patients identified as at 2pm today (07), the National Operating Centre for the Prevention of COVID-19 (NOCPOC) said. A 39-year-old supervisor at the Brandix factory tested positive for the novel coronavirus in the early hours of Sunday (04). Aggressive testing of the employee’s direct contacts has subsequently confirmed the spread of the disease within the factory. Authorities have yet to determine where the supervisor contracted the virus.

With the new cases, total confirmed COVID-19 cases in the island has risen to 4,442 since March this year. Some 140 individuals are currently under investigation in hospitals with 1,163 active cases.

At least one health official has confirmed community transmission of the virus in Sri Lanka. Former Medical Research Institute (MRI) Director Dr Jayaruwan Banadara told a private television news network on Monday (06) that the virus had been in the community for the past few months outside the clusters identified by the health officials. Dr Bandara was removed from his position as MRI Director yesterday, but no official reason was given.

Sri Lanka had managed to largely contain the spread of the virus, with no confirmed reports of community transmission until this week. The country held a parliamentary election in August with a 76% turnout and no reports of an outbreak as a result.

Of the total 1,163 active cases in the island as of today, 132 are Sri Lankans repatriated from abroad.

The number of confirmed cases from the Brandix cluster appears to be growing rapidly as testing continues. A Brandix employee from the company’s Welisara plant also tested positive a short while ago, a spokesman said.

In other related developments, a member of the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) janitorial staff also tested positive for the virus earlier today. A BIA official told EconomyNext that all staff will under go PCR testing today. Army chief and head of the pandemic task force Lt Gen Shavendra Silva told reporters a short while ago that the BIA staffer had visited a Brandix hostel in Minuwangoda, where apparel workers who are now undergoing treatment for the virus had been staying. The Colombo Golf Club, too, temporarily closed down its operations today following the daughter of a gardener testing positive for COVID-19.

Police curfew has been imposed in 18 police areas in the Gampaha district. Authorities have yet to announce lockdown measures in other parts of the country including the Colombo district, though PCR tests are being conducted at the Brandix headquarters in Colombo 03. The human resource team at the Brandix factory in Minuwangoda is said to have visited the Kollupitiya head office, though no staff member has tested positive yet, a NOCPOC spokesman said.

Meanwhile, health authorities are seeking public assistance in tracking down a COVID-19 infected patient who has allegedly gone missing from the Ragama hospital this morning.


The patient, a resident of Peliyagoda, had come to the Ragama hospital requesting a PCR test and subsequently tested positive for the novel coronavirus. By the time hospital staff had reached him to obtain personal information for contact tracing purposes, the patient had disappeared from the hospital premises, an official said. (Colombo/Oct07/2020)

As of now...

Coronavirus Cases:
36,394,156

Deaths:
1,060,462

Recovered:
27,412,315

343,517 new cases world wide higher than previous day and the highest per day recorded so far since the beginning of the pandemic!

5,909 more deaths higher than previous 24 hours.

India (78,809), USA (48,715) & Brazil (31,404) are the three countries with highest number of new cases that drives the new cases.

India (963), USA (932) & Brazil (733) were the countries with highest new deaths for last 24 hours.

208 new COVID-19 patients over past 24 hours in Sri Lanka; total cases at 4,459

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lankan health authorities identified 208 new COVID-19 patients as at 11.00am today (08), the National Operations Centre for the Prevention of COVID-19 (NOCPOC) said.

Of the 208 patients, five are returnees from abroad – three having returned from Russia and two sailors from India while the rest are the Brandix apparel factory supervisor from Divulapitiya in the Gampaha district who tested positive for the novel coronavirus yesterday and her direct contacts.



With the new cases, total confirmed COVID-19 patients in the island has risen to 4,459. Some 201 individuals are currently under investigation in hospitals while 1,172 active cases.

Seven Sri Lankan patients who had arrived from abroad returned home upon recovery as at 6am today, bringing total recoveries in Sri Lanka to 3,266.

The number of patients reported from the Minuwangoda cluster increased to 1034, with 202 new patients been discovered in the last 24 hours.

NOCPOC reports said all the patients have recovered from the Kandakadu cluster and has been discharged from the centre.



By this morning, 42 returnees arrived in Colombo, all of whom flew in from Doha,Qatar NOCPOC said, adding that all returnees will be directed to military-run quarantine centres.

Some 164 people ended their quarantine at military-run centres yesterday, according to NOCPOC. A total of 49,577 people have completed quarantine so far.

Meanwhile, the number of people in quarantine in 80 centres run by the armed forces is 8,029.

A total of 308,989 PCR tests have been conducted in the island so far with 1280 tests carried out yesterday.

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Sri Lanka as at October 07 records 13 COVID-19 related deaths.

Officials said the Covid Prevention Task Force is currently investigating three-clusters of possible COVID- 19 patients related to the discovery of the patient in Divulapitiya and as of now 1034 cases have been discovered so far in these clusters.



The towns of Minuwangoda, Divulapitiya, Veyangoda, Gampaha, Kirindiwela, Dompe, Pugoda, Ganemulla, Weeragula, Weliweriya, Malwathuhiripitiya, Nittambuwa, Meerigama, Pallewela, Yakkala, Ja-ela, Seeduwa and Kandana Police areas are under police curfew.

Officials said the count of the COVID-19 patients in this cluster are likely to go up further.

Medical personnel have conducted 2000 plus of PCR tests in the Minuwangoda brandix plant and other related places.

Releasing a statement, Army Commander Shavendra Silva, Any employees from the Minuwangoda Brandix apparel factorythat have not yet contacted any relevant authorities to immediately contact Covid Operation Centre using the 011 3456548 telephone number.

As some of the Brandix staff had gone home on holidays during the long weekend cases have been detected in a number of cities and towns across the country.

In other related developments, a member of the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) janitorial staff also tested positive for the virus earlier today. A BIA official told EconomyNext that all staff will under go PCR testing today.

Army chief and head of the pandemic task force Lt Gen Shavendra Silva told reporters yesterday that the BIA staffer had visited a Brandix hostel in Minuwangoda, where apparel workers who are now undergoing treatment for the virus had been staying. The Colombo Golf Club, too, temporarily closed down its operations today following the daughter of a gardener testing positive for COVID-19.



NOCPOC said the authorities are also tracing any other contacts of employees from Man Power company that is said to be working in Brandix apparel plant in the free trade zone.

Meanwhile, a 64-year old woman from Yakkala died around ten minutes after she was admitted to the Galkanda Quarantine Centre with COVID-like symptoms, NOCPOC said in a statement.

“Doctors suspect that she died due to COVID-19 as her daughter is COVID-19 positive,” NOCPOC spokesman Col Vijitha Hettiarachchi said.

However, early reports said she died due to a heart failure.

Chief Epidemiologist Doctor Sudath Samaraweera told reporters after the postmortem, the body will be disposed of under the World Health Organization guidelines. (Colombo/Oct08/2020)

Bishop of Mannar directed to self-quarantine

ECONOMYNEXT – The Bishop of Mannar was directed to self-quarantine today (09) upon discovering that a confirmed COVID-19 carrier from Chilaw had visited the Mannar Bhiop’s House.

The patient, a male construction worker, had travelled from Chilaw to Mannar for some repair work at the Bisho[‘s House.

The COVID-19 taskforce said in a statement this afternoon that all residents of the Bishop’s House will be directed to self-quarantine under the supervision of the health authorities.

Another 36-year-old person who was tested positive for the novel coronavirus was discovered in Chilaw.

The task force said the person had travelled to Colombo on September 23 to attend the Colombo international book fair at BMICH and had also travelled to Nuwara Eliya on September 30.

The patient had taken medical treatment from a private medical centre prior to being discovered by health authorities.

Meanwhile, a 38-year-old free trade zone apparel factory worker from Rajapaksha Gama, Seeduwa also tested positive for the virus today.

She was working at ‘Next manufactures’, an export firm that will be closed for the

weekend and sanitised after the event.

About 20 associates of the person have been isolated.

Chamila Thushari, program co-ordinator for DaBindu, an apparel workers’ collective said the firm had about 2,000 workers.

Sri Lanka’s Board of Investment had asked all export firms to test about 5 percent of their workforce.

Up to October 09, over 1,053 persons of the Minuwangoda cluster had been found with 19 confirmed over the last 24 hours. (Colombo/ Oct09/2020)

Sri Lanka COVID-19 hospital capacity down to 419

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s hospitals designated to treat COVID-19 patients are close to full with only 419 available capacity out of 1,552 as of 1500hrs today (09), according to the National Operations Centre for the Prevention of COVID-19 (NOCPC).

There are 1,133 patients currently in the hospitals, 1,017 of whom are from the Minuwangoda cluster while 118 are foreign returnees.

The 12 hospitals are IDH, BH Welikanda, Colombo East BH, Iranawila Hospital, BH Minuwangoda, DGH Hambanthta, DH Rabukkana, Kaburugamuwa, BH Theldeniya, Neville Fernendo Hospital, Kaththankudi and BH Homagam.

Only Neville Fernando Hospital has 400 patient capacity. The others have 100 beds or less.



The Brandix Minuwangoda cluster is continuing to grow with patients being detected across the country. The apparel manufacture employs close to 40,000 workers. (Colombo/Oct09/2020)

As of now...

Coronavirus Cases:
36,904,951

Deaths:
1,068,715

Recovered:
27,757,266

349,338 new cases world wide higher than previous day and the highest per day recorded so far since the beginning of the pandemic beating yesterday's highest count!

6,420 more deaths higher than previous 24 hours.

India (70,824), USA (56,652) & Brazil (27,182) are the three countries with highest number of new cases that drives the new cases.

India (967), USA (957) & Brazil (730) were the countries with highest new deaths for last 24 hours.

As of now ...

Coronavirus Cases:
37,583,231

Deaths:
1,078,930

Recovered:
28,183,209

355,911 new cases world wide higher than previous day and the highest per day recorded so far since the beginning of the pandemic beating yesterday's highest count!

5,074 more deaths lower than previous 24 hours.

India (74,535), USA (50,876) & Brazil (34,650) are the three countries with highest number of new cases that drives the new cases.

India (921), USA (635) & Brazil (544) were the countries with highest new deaths for last 24 hours.

Sri Lanka confirms 61 new Coronavirus cases, two Mannar villages locked down

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka has confirmed 61 new Coronavirus case linked to the Minuwangoda Covid-19 cluster, the state information office said as two villages in the North Eastern Mannar district was locked down.

Out of the 61 confirmed 39 were workers of the Brandix factory and 22 were contacts.

Sri Lanka has locked down Periyakadei and Pattithottam villages in the Mannar area in Northwest of the island contain the spread of Coronavirus, the state information office said quoting Army Chief Shavendra Silva.

Sri Lanka’s anti-Covid-19 centre said five persons were found positive in the area on Saturday.

The Mannar Bishops house was isolated earlier in the week after a carpenter who repaired building tested positive. He had come after working at a construction site in Kirillawella, in Gampaha.

The five confirmed cases were colleagues of the carpenter, military spokesman Colonel Vijitha Hettiarchchi said.

Sri Lanka has already placed several areas in the Gampaha district under Coronavirus curfew which are around the epicenter of a new cluster in Minuwangoda.

As of now...

Coronavirus Cases:
37,746,051

Deaths:
1,081,435

Recovered:
28,347,330

278,013 new cases world wide lower than previous day.

3,874 more deaths lower than previous 24 hours.

India (67,757), USA (41,935) & France (16,101) are the three countries with highest number of new cases that drives the new cases.

India (813), USA (325) & Argentina (287) were the countries with highest new deaths for last 24 hours.