60% of Kano mysterious deaths caused by COVID-19,FG

The Federal Government says 60% of the mysterious deaths in  Kano may have been triggered by COVID-19.

The Minister of Health, Dr. Osagie Ehanire stated this on Monday at the daily presidential Taskforce on COVID-19 briefing in Abuja.

Solacebase recalled that over 650 spike deaths were reported in Kano around April which the state government vehemently denied before the federal government instituted an investigation team that conducted a verbal autopsy and others.

Dr. Osagie Ehanire said the Ministerial Task team report on the mysterious deaths recorded in Kano state in April and early May, which totals 979, shows that between 50-60% of the deaths may have been triggered by COVID-19 in eight Metropolitan local government of the state.

He said the task team’s visit was also extended to fact-finding excursions to offer support to five other states in the north.

“The team confirmed from graveyard records, that a total of 979 deaths were recorded in 8 municipal LGA in the state at a rate of 43 deaths per day, with a peak in the second week of April.

According to him, “By the beginning of May, the death rate had reduced to the 11 deaths per day it used to be.  The verbal autopsy revealed that about 52 per cent of deaths had occurred at home while 38 per cent were in a hospital.

He said, “If circumstantial evidence are all to go by, investigation suggests that between 50-60 per cent of the deaths may have been triggered by or due to COVID-19 in the face of preexisting ailments. Most fatalities were over 65 years of age.

The minister noted that the federal intervention also helped in stopping infections among health workers in those northern states affected.

Dr. Osagie Ehanire said while more than 150 health workers had been infected at the time of their arrival, there was no report of infection among health workers who had received training on infection prevention and control, thus restoring confidence.