Vasco records fourth Covid death as Goa toll rises to 9

PANAJI/VASCO: The port town, the worst hit by the pandemic, recorded its fourth and the state’s ninth Covid death on Thursday even as the state reported over 100 positive cases for the second consecutive day.

A 50-year-old man with underlying health conditions succumbed to the virus within two hours of his admission at the Goa Medical College (GMC), early Thursday morning.
He was brought to GMC in a critical state. He tested positive for Covid-19, but died before his test result was received. “He was admitted in the isolation ward no. 113, but died within two hours. The ward was sanitised after his body was shifted to the morgue,” GMC dean Dr S M Bandekar said.
His death bore similarities to that of the 45-year-old fisherman who died last week at his residence at Khariawada in Vasco.
On Thursday, for the second day in a row, the state reported over 100 cases, increasing its active case count to 869. Since Saturday, Goa has seen a jump in cases with a total of 682 cases being detected in six days.
Of Thursday’s 112 cases, 25 were detected in Loutolim and neighbouring areas in South Goa. The total number of cases under the Loutolim primary health centre has gone up to 30 from just five cases earlier this week.
Out of 3,831 samples tested on Thursday, 2,139 returned negative and 1,580 reports are still awaited.
With one of staffer of the North Goa district and sessions court testing positive, the department of law has issued a circular listing instructions to be followed while conducting court proceedings.
Sada, Baina, New Vaddem and Indiranagar continued to report new cases. Cases reported from Indiranagar in Chimbel rose to 32 with addition of five new cases.
After the one case detected in Nerul on Wednesday, two more tested positive in the same locality, which led to extensive contact tracing till late evening, a health official said.
Other places that reported fresh cases are, Moti Dongor, Shiroda, Mandur, and Cuncolim.
The health department is yet to find links of isolated cases found in Nuvem, Agasaim, Caranzalem, Mardol, Majorda, Tivim, Cujira, Betalbatim, Bambolim, Corlim, Chinchinim, Cumbharjua and Benaulim during the last few days.