Highest number of confirmed COVID-19 patients in Twin Cities recorded

Rawalpindi: The highest number of patients tested positive for coronavirus illness, COVID-19 in one day was reported here in the twin cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi on Friday since the outbreak hit this region of the country as in last 24 hours, as many as 80 more patients have been confirmed positive for the disease taking total number of confirmed patients to 874 in the twin cities.

Data collected by ‘The News’ on Friday reveals that in last 24 hours, as many as 50 new patients have been tested positive for COVID-19 from the district taking total number of confirmed patients so far reported from Rawalpindi to 531. The first patient in the district was tested positive for COVID-19 here at Benazir Bhutto Hospital on March 20. The 24-year old male patient had reached Pakistan from Dubai.

Meanwhile, in last 24 hours, another 30 patients were tested positive for COVID-19 in Islamabad Capital Territory that has taken the total number of patients so far confirmed positive in ICT to 343. The first patient, a 61-year old male in ICT was tested positive at Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences on February 26. He had spent a month in Iran for pilgrimage (ziaraat).

It is worth mentioning here that on April 1, a total of 42 patients were tested positive from Rawalpindi district while 54 from ICT making a total of 96 patients. On Friday, the number has reached 874. Till April 1, only three patients died of coronavirus illness in the twin cities and all three deaths were from Rawalpindi. To date, a total of 34 confirmed patients have lost their lives due to COVID-19 in the region.

Of a total of 531 patients so far tested positive from the district, as many as 153 have so far been discharged after treatment from healthcare facilities while 30 have lost their lives, said Executive District Officer (Health) Dr. Sohail Ahmed Chaudhary while talking to ‘The News’ on Friday.

He added that 93 confirmed patients of the disease have been in isolation at their homes in the district while 255 confirmed patients have been undergoing treatment at the healthcare facilities in town designated for corona management.

He said a total of four healthcare facilities including Corona Management Centre at Rawalpindi Institute of Urology, Benazir Bhutto Hospital, Pakistan Red Crescent Rawalpindi and a field hospital at Shahbaz Sharif Sports Complex have already been working on managing COVID-19 patients in the district while Holy Family Hospital is also going to make its corona ward functional.

Talking of persons in quarantine, he said three persons from ‘Tableeghi Jamaat’ are under quarantine at Zakariya Masjid in Westridge Rawalpindi while 11 in University of Engineering and Technology Taxila. The health department is waiting for their results, he said.

Another 987 persons are under quarantine at their homes while some 274 have already completed quarantine period, he said. On Friday, as many as 348 active cases of COVID-19 were undergoing treatment in the district.

In ICT, out of a total of 343 confirmed patients, 44 have recovered and four died of the disease. On Friday, there were a total 295 active cases in ICT according to the National Command and Control Centre.