Tamil Nadu’s tally of COVID-19 cases moved closer to the six-lakh mark on Wednesday, as 5,659 persons tested positive for the infection.
The fresh cases took the State’s count to 5,97,602. As many as 46,263 persons are undergoing treatment and 5,41,819 persons have been discharged till date.
9,520 total deaths
The State recorded 67 deaths (46 in government hospitals and 21 in private hospitals) on Wednesday, taking the toll to 9,520.
A total of 5,610 persons, including 1,205 in Chennai and 697 in Coimbatore, were discharged after treatment. As many as 11,320 persons are undergoing treatment in Chennai, 5,027 in Coimbatore, 2,794 in Salem and 2,170 in Chengalpattu.
With 1,295 new cases, Chennai’s count increased to 1,67,376. Coimbatore reported 574 cases and Salem 378. There were 335 cases in Chengalpattu.
Surge in Thanjavur
Thanjavur saw a surge in infections as 266 persons tested positive.
Tiruvallur and Kancheepuram recorded 275 and 207 cases, respectively.
Seven districts recorded 100-plus cases.
They included Erode (161), Namakkal (161), Tiruvannamalai (147) and Tiruppur (137).
Of the 67 fatalities, Chennai accounted for 16 and Coimbatore 11.
Six persons died in Tiruppur and five in Salem. Five of the deceased had no co-morbidities.
Among them was a 37-year-old man from Vellore, who had tested positive on September 16 and was admitted to a private hospital with complaints of fever, cough for three days and breathing difficulty for two days.
He died on September 28 due to acute respiratory distress syndrome and COVID-19 pneumonia.
A 27-year-old man from Thanjavur was admitted to a private hospital on September 20 with complaints of fever for four days.
He died on September 30 due to COVID-19 pneumonia.
As many as 86,928 samples were tested in the last 24 hours, taking the total figure to 73,54,050.