Maldives Covid-19 case tally surpasses 84,000-mark, recoveries exceed 82,000
142 new cases were reported by sundown on Wednesday
Samples being collected for Covid-19 testing
Maldives Covid-19 case tally has surpassed the 84,000-mark.
Latest statistics publicized by the Health Protection Agency (HPA), reveal that 142 new cases were confirmed nationwide between 6pm Tuesday and 6pm Wednesday, of which 88 were detected from outlying atolls.
42 of the total of 4,155 samples tested in the past 24 hours returned positive from the congest capital city, with the remaining 12 having been confirmed from operational resorts.
With this development Maldives coronavirus case count currently sits at 84,017.
Further, the total number of recoveries observed nationwide have also surpassed 82,000.
HPA confirmed 162 recoveries within the reporting period, with which recoveries have risen to 82,101.
The country’s active coronavirus cases have dropped to 1,674 from the previous day’s 1,694.
Hospital admissions remain unchanged from the previous day, at 20.
Maldives reported its first Covid-19 fatality in April 2020. Since then, the death toll has been pushed to 229, with the latest deaths reported over the past 24 hours, when an 89-year-old Maldivian man succumbed to virus complications while being treated at the Covid Management Facility in Gaaf Dhaal atoll, followed by the death of an 87-year-old local male.
The country has been in a state of public health emergency for over a year, since 12 March 2020. It was extended an 18th time to expire on October 1.
Maldives was faced by a fourth and more infectious coronavirus wave in early May, with cases rising to alarming levels at 1,000 on a daily basis. With the implementation of stricter measures, cases began declining once again, and authorities introduced further eases to restrictions in early July for the extensive government holidays.
Eases have been doubling with those that have completed both doses of Covid-19 vaccine allowed to travel domestically without the need to quarantine, with a negative PCR test result. HPA has since publicized a list of islands where the criteria for Covid-19 vaccination coverage conditions have been met.
The geographical advantage of being comprised of a scatter of islands initially enabled Maldives to keep tabs on the spread of coronavirus when the first few cases surfaced. Things spiraled out of control after a community transmission was detected in the congested capital on 15 April 2020 to which authorities responded by imposing an immediate lockdown.
Months later, authorities began easing the lockdown in phases, with cases going on a downward spiral. Things seemed to be in control until the new year rolled around and cases began spiraling once more. Since April 2020, authorities have been repeating a cycle of curfews, lockdowns, partial lockdowns and other restrictive measures in their successful efforts to curb the spread of the virus.
