Alarm in Buldhana, markets close over corona death rumours

Nagpur: Panic gripped Buldhana city on Sunday after a rumour spread that the 75-year-old man, who died in the isolation ward of district hospital on Saturday, was infected with Covid-19 virus.
Even as authorities clarified on Sunday afternoon that the man was not infected, and he died of natural causes, markets and shops remained closed for most of the day. The deceased was a resident of a suburb of Buldhana. People in his locality were in panic due to the rumours.
“A lot of media persons called me regarding the death of a person yesterday at Buldhana District Hospital. The deceased was not infected with Covid-19,” tweeted Buldhana district collector Suman Rawat Chandra. “However, please continue to take precautions and follow all guidelines in this regard. We are committed to your health and safety, and need your invaluable cooperation in defeating corona,” she added.
Buldhana civil surgeon Dr Premchand Pandit confirmed the burial of this person was conducted on Saturday late night itself.
Meanwhile, on Sunday, a team of 12 tourists — five from Malaysia and seven from Indonesia arrived to Khamgaon, a tehsil headquarters, some 52km away from Buldhana. These tourists were in Khamgaon for religious purposes. Three of them developed cough and cold so they were admitted to the general hospital at Khamgaon.
The remaining nine are healthy, but they were sent to Buldhana and admitted to the local Ladies hospital as a precautionary measure. Samples of three patients admitted in Khamgaon will be collected and sent for testing while the other nine will be kept under observation for next 14 days.