An elderly person died of coronavirus here on Monday, while seven more persons tested positive for the dreaded disease in SPSR Nellore district.

With the death of the 65-year-old man in the COVID-19 Isolation ward, the death toll rose to three in the district and the total number of infected persons to 79.

Six of the persons who contracted the virus belonged to one family from a hotspot area of Kottamitta in Nellore city, health officials here said. One of the family members had returned after attending a religious congregation in New Delhi and had spread it to his family members.

Twenty-three persons had been cured of the disease in the district, where 54 persons are undergoing treatment. As many 213 persons, including the primary and secondary contacts of the family, are quarantined. The results of 721 mouth swab samples are still awaited.

Lockdown

Following the detection of fresh cases, police enforced lockdown strictly in Kottamitta and other parts of the city.

Police seized vehicles of persons who stirred out of their homes without valid reasons and booked cases against them. Each and every person who came out on one pretext or the other were doubly cross-checked before being allowed to proceed.

Police personnel at the traffic junctions held placards pleading with the motorists to stay safe at home and follow personal hygiene to keep the viral disease at bay.