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Paul Osuyi, Asaba
The number of COVID-19 cases in Delta State rose to five on Wednesday when the sample of a 36-year-old lady returned positive after laboratory analysis.
Until the latest case, the number of cases in the state was four with one death among them.
But speculations were rife late on Tuesday that a fifth case had been recorded, which however did not reflect in the data of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) daily reported cases.
The latest COVID-19 patient had approached the state General Hospital at Otu-Jeremi, Ughelli South Local Government Area of the state for treatment obviously for another ailment.
But the patient who was said to have come to the hospital with her boyfriend, manifested symptoms of the dreaded disease, after she was diagnosed of tuberculosis.
A staff of the hospital who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said the patient was moved to the state isolation centre at the Delta State University Teaching Hospital (DELSUTH), Oghara.
According to the source, the patient’s sample was taken to Irrua Hospital, Edo State on April 17th for COVID-19 test and the result came out positive.
Meanwhile, three doctors, a pharmacist, and medical laboratory scientist who attended to the patient, initially at Otu-Jeremi have be quarantined at the hospital’s holding facility.
The state Commissioner for Health, Dr. Mordi Ononye told our correspondent on phone in Asaba that a statement would be issued through the Ministry of Information on the official position of things in the state with regard to the latest case.
On the quarantine of front line healthcare workers at Otu-Jeremi, Dr. Ononye described it as a rumour, insisting that whatever is contained in the anticipated statement is the official position of government.
However, as at the time of filing this report, the statement was yet to be released, even as rumours were rife that there was already a sixth case.
But details of the purported sixth case were unavailable at press time.
