COVID-19: Kaduna Confirms Six Cases

The Kaduna State Government has confirmed a new case of coronavirus, bringing the number of COVID-19 patients in the state to six as on Friday.

Dr Amina Baloni, the Commissioner for Health said in a statement on Saturday that the latest case “is a male, who worked as a gateman in the Mando area and recently returned from Lagos’’.

According to her, the sixth case had “travelled to Kaduna on public transport and contacted the authorities as his symptoms worsened.

The patient has been evacuated to the state’s Infectious Disease Centre’’.

The commissioner said that the latest case has presented a nightmare scenario of possible community transmission of COVID-19 in the state.

“It is very difficult and complicated to trace the contacts of a patient, who came from Lagos via public transport and has had some instance of local commuting since his arrival,’’ the commissioner stated.

“The Rapid Response Team is trying to elicit from him a list of contacts so that they can be tracked and monitored.

“He does not know who his fellow passengers from Lagos are.

“But the team is working to develop an idea of his local contacts in Kaduna, including any vehicles he commuted in and people he met at the hospital he visited and within his neighbourhood,’’

Baloni said that the state government has consistently appealed to the public to practice social distancing and directed commercial buses to carry no more than two passengers per row.

She added that this was in order to prevent and avert a scenario like this sixth case.

“This instance of people spreading the COVID-19 from one state to another further reinforces the need to stop all inter-state travel.

“People need to stay in one place and help reduce the footprint of the pandemic,’’ she stated.

The commissioner stated that the government has also banned commercial motorcycle and tricycle operators because they do not satisfy the conditions for social distancing.

She reiterated the government’s advice against large gatherings and congregational prayers.

“Now that there is a case of possible community transmission of COVID-19, residents must begin to take more seriously the quarantine conditions.’’

The government warned that people should stay at home, but “go out only when absolutely necessary’’ while they should practice personal hygiene, especially washing hands with soap and water regularly. (NAN)