First Coronavirus Death In Odisha

Bhubaneswar: A 72-year-old man of Jharpada in the Odisha capital died of coronavirus on Monday, the Health and Family Welfare (H&FW) Department confirmed on Tuesday.

This is the first death due to coronavirus in Odisha.

According to a H&FW Department tweet, the man was admitted to AIIMS-Bhubaneswar on April 4 following respiratory distress.

“He had a history of chronic hypertension and tested positive for COVID-19,” the tweet said.

Contact tracing and containment is on, it added.

Following the death of the patient from Jharpada, the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation is likely to declare the area as containment zone later in the day to facilitate contact tracing and active surveillance.

In a statement, superintendent of the AIIMS-Bhubaneswar Jawahar Pillai said that the blood and swab samples of the deceased were sent to RMRC on Monday for the test. “We are awaiting the test report,” he said.

The body of the deceased has been kept at the morgue of AIIMS, he added.

Bhubaneswar has turned into a potential COVID-19 hotspot with the city accounting for 32 cases out of the total 41 reported in Odisha’s so far with one death.