Nipah virus: One more death in Kerala, toll reaches 11
One more person died today morning raising the death toll due to the Nipah virus to 11 in Kerala. V Moosa (61), who was on ventilator support since the past few days, succumbed to the deadly virus today, said Kozhikode district medical officer Dr. Jayasree E. The official further said confirmation is awaited with regard to one more death in Kozhikode. Here's more.
This is the fourth death in Moosa's family. Moosa's sons Mohammed Saliah (28), Mohammed Sadiq (26), and a relative had died earlier. While two of the deaths have been confirmed due to Nipah, the blood samples of one of his sons had not been tested for it, sources said. Nurse Lini Puthussery, who was tending to the Moosa family, also died due to Nipah.
Kerala government has also issued an advisory, asking travelers to avoid visiting the four districts of Kozhikode, Malappuram, Wayanad, and Kannur. 11 deaths have been reported from Kozhikode and Malappuram districts and 18 are undergoing treatment in various hospitals, including one in Wayanad. Isolation wards have also been set up in Thalassery government hospital in the district of Kannur.
In Kozhikode, District Collector UV Jose has ordered temporary stoppage of all training programs and summer camps in the affected areas such as Changaroth, Koorachund, Kottur, Cheruvannur, Chekyad, Chakkittapara, and Olavanna. The anganwadis in these regions too have been asked to close down. Meanwhile the administration is hoping that the situation will be under control by the time schools reopen in a week.
A crisis management group has been constituted to coordinate the response of government agencies following the deaths in Kozhikode and Malappuram districts. A National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) expert team, including its director, Dr. Sujeet Kumar Singh and Head of Epidemiology, Dr. SK Jain, and a high-level team from the AIIMS are camping in Kerala. Surveillance has been increased in all districts.
