Kerala reports first death due to COVID-19 after 69-year-old dies

COVID-19 has claimed one life in Kerala on Saturday, while six more persons were found to be infected. Five others under treatment have recovered, which includes a foreign national.

Kasargod district that shared borders with Karnataka that witnessed a steep increase of 34 cases to reach 81 on Friday could heave a sigh of relief on Saturday as only one more positive case was found.

Follow live updates of coronavirus cases in India here

Kasargod district medical officer Dr. A V Ramdas told DH that out of the 81 cases reported in the district till Friday, 69 persons recently returned from Gulf countries and only the remaining 12 were close relatives and friends of the infected. However, the district continues to be in a tight vigil as tests of over 100 suspect persons were still awaited and contact tracing of the 34 found infected was only progressing.

Track the state-wise COVID-19 cases here

The first COVID-19 victim in Kerala was Yakub Hussain Sait, 69, of Chullikal at Mattancherry in Kochi. Kerala Health minister K K Shailaja said that the condition of some more aged persons in Kerala was also serious.

Yakub returned from Dubai on March 16. He was found COVID-19 positive on March 22 and was under treatment at the government medical college hospital in Kochi. He was suffering from heart ailments and developed Pneumonia. His wife and driver of the cab in which he traveled were also tested positive for COVID-19 infection and under treatment. Yakub's relatives were shown the body only through video call and the funeral was performed at a local mosque by following the safety norms with less than ten people participating.

Kerala Chief Minister said that the comparatively lesser number of positive cases found on Saturday did not bring any relief to the state as many more were still under observation. At present 176 persons are undergoing treatment in Kerala for COVID-19.