Even as the authorities have strengthened the precautionary measures against the spread of SRS-COV-2 virus to more persons, as many as 16 swab samples from the district tested negative for the virus during an examination at the National Institute of Virology, Alappuzha.
Giving a major relief to the health authorities, the number of new isolation cases too marked a significant decline with just 56 persons being advised to go on home quarantine on Saturday.
At present, 11 persons are in isolation wards in hospitals and 1,107 persons are under surveillance in Kottayam.
While one person was discharged from isolation ward, a Dubai-returned man hailing from Thrissur was admitted to isolation ward at the Government Medical College here on Saturday.
Meanwhile, relatives of the 64 year-old man who died on Thursday while living under home isolation in Chengalam near Kumarakom, alleged serious lapses from the part of the Health Department in providing timely assistance. The deceased man had been listed as a secondary contact of one of the two COVID-19 patients from Chengalam and died following a massive cardiac arrest on Thursday night
No ambulance
According to relatives of the deceased person, the person was taken to the hospital in a private vehicle as the health authorities failed to provide ambulance service in time.
