Coronavirus Updates

604,689 new cases world wide significantly higher than previous 24 hours passing the 600,000 mark for the first time registering the new 24 hour high!

8,717 more deaths lower than previous 24 hours!

USA (118,204), France (58,046) & India (47,622) are the three countries with highest number of new cases that drives the new cases. USA worse off with their highest count recorded per day so far.

USA (1,125), India (675) & Mexico (635) were the countries with highest new deaths for last 24 hours.

383 new COVID-19 patients in Sri Lanka; total cases rise to 12,570

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lankan health officials identified 383 new COVID-19 patients over a 24-hour period that ended at 6am today (06), the National Operations Centre for the Prevention of COVID-19 (NOCPOC) said.

All new patients belong to the Minuwangoda and Peliyagoda clusters.

The new cases break down as follows: 168 from Colombo, 157 from Gampaha, 24 from Kalutara, six from Kegalle, five from Matara, one each from Batticaloa and Kurunegala and 21 police officers.

With the new cases, Sri Lanka’s total patient count has increased to 12,570, with 5,918 active cases and 429 under investigation in hospitals.

NOCPOC said so far 27 COVID-19 positive Advanced Level students sat for their exams at the Infectious Diseases Hospital (IDH) where they completed it successfully while undergoing treatment.

A total of 294 police officers have also tested positive for the virus.

Sri Lanka’s Welidaka prison has also confirmed six COVID-19 positive cases including four female inmates, Welikada prison Deputy Commissioner Chandana Ekanayake said.

Ekanayake said the identified cases were new prisoners that were kept in quarantine in separate cells for 14 days and were admitted to Welikanda Hospital for treatment.

He said a prison guard also tested positive for the virus and was admitted to the IDH for treatment.

A medicine dispenser in the prison had tested positive for the virus earlier and the prison complex is suspected to be the source of the virus, he added.

As at 6am today, 765 Sri Lankan patients returned home upon recovery, bringing total recoveries in Sri Lanka to 6,623. Of 765 recovered patients, one is a returnee from abroad while 764 are from the Minuwangoda cluster.

NOCPOC said 3,200 patients recovered from the Minuwangoda cluster by November 06.

The number of patients reported from the Minuwangoda cluster has increased to 9,096 with the new positive cases identified.

NOCPOC reports showed that after the first positive case of the Minuwangoda cluster was discovered by health authorities on October 03, within the first week the cluster increased to 1,186 and by November 06 to 9,096, with 1,041 employees of the apparel factory 1,007 from Peliyagoda fish market and 7,048 close contacts being identified as positive cases.
Meanwhile, the number of people in quarantine in 30 centres run by the armed forces is 2,420.

Some 43 people ended their quarantine at military-run centres yesterday, according to NOCPOC. A total of 63,644 people have completed quarantine so far.

By this morning, 34 returnees arrived in Colombo, 17 of whom flew in from Narita, Japan, 16 from Sydney, Australia and one from Doha, Qatar NOCPOC said, adding that all returnees will be directed to military-run quarantine centres.

A total of 568,774 PCR tests have been conducted in the island so far, with 11,316 tests carried out yesterday. NOCPOC reports said, adding that the results of some PCR tests are still pending.

Sri Lanka’s novel coronavirus related deaths rose to 29 with the Department of Government Information announcing that five more people had died of COVID-19 yesterday (November 5), the highest number of fatalities recorded in a single day since the virus entered the island nine months ago.

The new deaths came from the Western Province where hundreds of new cases are being discovered from random tests and deaths are being reported from people at home.

Among the dead is a 68-year-old female from Wellampitiya who had been admitted to hospital with chest pains on November 04. A 58-year-old female from Colombo 12 had died at home and tested positive for the virus post mortem. A 73-year-old female from Colombo 14 had died at home, with a lung infection related to the novel coronavirus.A 74-year-old from Colombo 15 had also died at home, due to a heart attack related to the virus. A 46-year-old male had died after being admitted to Pimbura hospital. (Colombo/Nov 06/2020)

As of now...

Coronavirus Cases:
49,762,279

Deaths:
1,250,143

Recovered:
35,313,499

623,260 new cases world wide significantly higher than previous 24 hours establishing a new day high !

9,084 more deaths higher than previous day and surpass 9,000 mark for the first time in the history !

USA (132,540), France (60,486) & India (49,851) are the three countries with highest number of new cases that drives the new cases. USA worse off with their highest count recorded per day so far.

USA (1,248), France (828) & India (576) were the countries with highest new deaths for last 24 hours.

Sri Lanka in multiple Coronavirus clusters as Covid-19 home deaths rise

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka has reported 30 Coronavirus deaths with 08 home deaths and authorities are placing more responsibility on containing the epidemic on members of the public with Covid-19 in multiple clusters with curfews expected to be relaxed soon.

Sri Lanka authorities have insisted that there is no community transmission in Sri Lanka.

Stages of Infection

The Health Ministry said on Friday, Sri Lanka is now in Alert 03 or multiple clusters, which is before community transmission.

Guidelines have been released for various businesses and activities and people are being asked to practice DReAM (D-Social Distancing, no gathering, mainly stay at home/Re-Respiratory Etiquette, A – aseptic practices/handwashing/sanitizing) and M – proper use of masks.

Though the SARS-CoV-2 strain found in Sri Lanka is said to be highly transmissible, social distancing had not been increased from the current one metre.

In community transmission, clusters cross-infect and the distinctions between them disappear.

Sri Lanka’s Public Health Inspector Union officials have warned that conditions of imminent community transmission existed in some areas of Colombo, which are densely populated.

The World Health Organization also classifies Sri Lanka as a country with clusters of Coronavirus.

Sri Lanka’s Army Chief General Shavendra Silva had indicated that curfews will be relaxed as soon as possible.

“President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has instructed us to do all the PCR tests and measures necessary during the nine days and work towards re-opening the Western province by the morning of November 09,” he said this week.

President Rajapaksa has said businesses and daily income earners were finding it difficult to cope with curfews, unlike state agencies which would anyway pay salaries.

In Colombo curfews were imposed on November 01 on areas with lower concentrations of Coronavirus cases while curfews were already in placed in northern parts of the capital with high concentration closer to a fish-market which had become the epicenter of a cluster than spread island-wide.

Health authorities would be allowed to isolate smaller areas, President Rajapaksa had said.

In the past three days, several areas in the provinces, which were isolated have been opened as contact tracers caught up.

Health authorities and public health inspectors have been engaged in a major battle to trace, test, isolate, and quarantine contacts. About 11,000 tests are being conducted daily on contacts, on those under treatment and on random and targeted samples in high risk groups.

There are around 84,000 first and second contacts of confirmed persons in quarantine in 31,000 households, the authorities have said.

Sri Lanka has confirmed 12,970 cases and 30 deaths, with 01 death and 400 new cases being reported on November 06 by the Health Ministry.

On November 05, five deaths were reported, including three who had died at home.

Sri Lanka’s Government Medical Officers Association had warned against discharging patients without a Coronavirus test, as discharge criteria were relaxed.

This week new cases were found in the countries largest prison in the capital and in the port.

Related

Sri Lanka’s Colombo Port hit by Coronavirus as Covid-19 cases top 12,700

Sri Lanka’s Welikada prison finds Covid-19 infections among new inmates

Cities as Epicentres

The WHO says community transmission starts in cities and spreads, though it is not classified as a separate stage.

“Cities are often national and international epicentres in the COVID-19 pandemic,” the World Health Organization says.



“Cities act as centres of community transmission, as well as entry points into further country-wide transmission through national and international travel and trade. They also often serve as points for health-care surge.”

The fish-market cluster from Peliyagoda north of Colombo has particular has spread the infection far and wide.

Officials initially attributed all discovered cases to the Minuwangoda cluster which was found on October 03.

But on October 20 random tests at the fish-market after several fish vendors were infected, found an even larger cluster at the Peliyagoda market.

Health Authorities have already said the Minuwangoda and fish-market clusters have been cross infecting.

The WHO does not have an intermediate definition for cities with cross infecting clusters.

Workers going from Colombo port and several apparel factories have also taken the disease home. In many rural areas, patients are turning up from a cluster at Colombo Dockyard.

This week Colombo Port saw a surge in cases.

Countries like China and Vietnam have stamped out clusters in cities and brought countries back to normal by isolating the city.

China locked down Wuhan where community transmission was widespread. Its economy is expected to grow 1.2 percent in 2020.



Sri Lanka’s Chief Epidemiologist Sudath Samaraweera has said that numbers from the Minuwangoda cluster have started to fall.

Home Deaths

In northern Colombo several older people with Chronic diseases have died in their homes.

Only one person in Colombo 13 was a contact of a known traced case, according to information publicly available.

Out of 30 deaths reported in Sri Lanka, 17 have been home deaths attributed to Coronavirus after post-mortem examination.

As clusters multiplied Sri Lanka dropped institutional quarantine, converted the facilities into treatment centres as started to quarantine first contacts at home.

Officials are now saying it is the responsibility of the public to protect their elders.

“If you take this virus home, and home and if your mother and father or grandparents get it, the bigger chance is that they will die, rather than recover,” Jayaruwan Bandara, spokesman for Sri Lanka’s Health Ministry told reporters.

“The responsibility is yours. Carry out the responsibility for them. If you go out do not bring it in.”

The comments came as authorities also stepped back from institutional quarantine, in contrast with the most successful countries in East Asia.

Institutional quarantine stops infections of second level contacts in a family where the first contact has not completed the incubation period, observers say.

When the first contact has not completed the incubation period, both first and second level contacts remain in the same house.

First Contacts in Home Quarantine

If first contacts are not in institutional quarantine the chances of family members including the elderly from getting infected is higher, observers familiar with the practices followed in the most successful countries in East Asia say.

If contact tracers get to the contact before the incubation period is over and takes a first contact to a centre, other family members will not get infected.



However, if first contacts are kept at home until they develop the disease and becomes a patient, there is a greater chance that other family members become infected increasing pressure on hospital beds and intensive care units

There is in general about a 6 -day window for tracers to find contacts, before they get to the next level, according to researchers in East Asia.

On November 03, a 68-year old woman from Jampettah Street died at home while under home quarantine.

“A family member of the deceased woman was diagnosed as Covid-19 and other members were under home quarantine,” the state information office said.

It was not clear whether the infected family member had already developed the disease by the time tracers found him.

Another person who had committed suicide also had a family member taken to hospital.

It is not clear whether the other home deaths are related to known contacts and whether family members were found.

Meanwhile, President Rajapaksa had asked officials to ensure that home quarantine is enforced after curfews are lifted.

“While paying special attention to close associates and the areas they belong to in the event infected persons found in the community, and if necessary, President advised to declare those areas as isolated,” his office said in a statement.

“Importance of concentrating on estates and flats was discussed in length”. (SB-Colombo/Nov07/2020)

As of now...

Coronavirus Cases:
50,393,574

Deaths:
1,258,219

Recovered:
35,628,650

598,153 new cases world wide lower than yesterday !

7,445 more deaths lower than previous day .

USA (124,390), France (86,852) & India (46,318) are the three countries with highest no of new cases that drives the new cases.

USA (1,031), India (557) & Mexico (551) were the countries with highest new deaths for last 24 hours.

Sri Lanka to lift Coronavirus curfew on Monday, some areas isolated: Army Chief

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s Coronavirus curfew will be lifted in the Western province and several other areas, but some high risk areas would continue to be isolated, Army chief Shavendra Silva said as deaths continued to rise.

Mattakuliya, Modera, Bloemandhal, Kotahena, Grandpass, Foreshore, Adirippu Road, Maligawatte, Dematagoda, Wellampitiya, Borella and Keselwatte will continue to be isolated.

In Gampaha Wattala, Peliyagoda, Kadawatha, Ragama, Negombod, Pamumugama, Ja-Ela and Sapugaskanda will be continued to be isolated.

In Kaluthata; Horana, Ingiriya, Wekada West Grama Sevaka areas would be isolated. (21/2)

In Kurunegala; the Municipal area and Kuliyapitiya police area to be isolated.

Food suppliers including ‘Choon Parng’ bread sellers would be allowed into the isolated areas, General Silva said.

But several flat in highly built-up areas in Colombo would be strictly isolated where movement out of the building would be prohibited.

Mattakkuliya: Mehthsanda Sevana and Minijaya Sevana Flats.

Modara: Ranmuthu Sevana Flats

Grandpass: Muwadora Uyana Flats

Dematagoda: Sirisara Uyana

Maligawatte: NHS Flats.

General Silva told Sri Lanka’s Derana Television that some of the home deaths reported were from the flats.

Overnight Sri Lanka’s Coronavirus deaths rose to 34 with three deaths at home and 445 new Covid-19 cases were confirmed, official data showed taking the total to 13,419 cases official data showed.

A 42-year old female from Maligawatte, Colombo 10 who had a history of heart disease had died at home from a heart attack, the state information office said.

A 69-year old female from Maligawatte, Colombo 10, had died after admission to the National Hospital from Covid-19 related pneumonia.

A 67-year old male from Wellampitiya, who had chronic diseases had died at home from Covid-19 related pneumonia after having fever several days.

An 88-year old female from Ganemulla who was a contact of an identified infected person from Minuwangoda had died. She was admitted to the Laggala Pallegama Hospital and transferred to IDH in Colombo.

She had died of sepsis and pneumonia.

Another 445 new Coronavirus cases were confirmed on November 07.

Sri Lanka has dropped institutional quarantine for home quarantine where First and Second contact family members are now in the same location.

Sri Lanka had confirmed 13,419 Covid-19 cases so far and 5,662 persons were under treatment. (Colombo/Nov08/2020)

As of now...

Coronavirus Cases:
50,722,782

Deaths:
1,261,745

Recovered:
35,787,261

472,682 new cases world wide notably lower than previous day.

5,841 more deaths notably lower than previous day .

USA (102,726), India (46,661) & France (38,619) are the three countries with highest no of new cases that drives the new cases.

USA (512), India (491) & Mexico (485) were the countries with highest new deaths for last 24 hours.

As of now...

Coronavirus Cases:
51,239,330

Deaths:
1,269,120

Recovered:
36,052,073

482,114 new cases world wide lower than previous day.

6,770 more deaths notably lower than previous day .

USA (125,689), India (37,211) & Italy (25,271) are the three countries with highest no of new cases that drives the new cases.

USA (641), France (548) & Iran (458) were the countries with highest new deaths for last 24 hours.

Sri Lanka Covid-19 total tops 14,000, Coronavirus isolation for Kandana, Mahabage

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka has placed Kandana, Mahabage police areas in Gampaha district under Coronavirus isolation as 354 new cases were reported in the island on November 09, the state information office said.

An 84-year old female resident of Kandana had died at the Infectious Diseases Hospital in Colombo after being transferred from a private hospital, taking total recorded deaths to 36.

She had been ill for long time and had passed away from Covid-19 related pneumonia.

The anti-Covid task force said Angulana South and Angulana North Grama Niladari divisions in the Angulana police areas have also been isolated.

Sri Lanka’s Covid-19 total has reached 14,285 on November 09, with active cases under treatment at 5,370.

The Kurunegala Municipala area was released from isolation except for Ilippugedara Grama Niladari Division and Kadveediya Grama Niladari Division.

Kuliyapitiya police area was also released from isolation except for Galagedera, Hammalawa and Ihala Kalugamuwa Grama Niladari divisions. (Colombo/Nov09/2020)

As of now...

Coronavirus Cases:
51,805,339

Deaths:
1,279,184

Recovered:
36,392,065

542,390 new cases world wide higher than previous day.

9,190 more deaths significantly higher than previous day and just short of all time high recorded so far !

USA (135,574), India (44,679) & Italy (35,098) are the three countries with highest no of new cases that drives the new cases.

USA (1,345), France (857) & Italy (580) were the countries with highest new deaths for last 24 hours.

As of now...

Coronavirus Cases:
52,432,512

Deaths:
1,289,533

Recovered:
36,675,916

613,741 new cases world wide higher than previous day and past 600,000 mark once more.

10,184 more deaths the highest recorded per day so far !

USA (142,808), India (48,285) & Brazil (47,724) are the three countries with highest no of new cases that drives the new cases. USA has recorded its highest count per day yesterday.

USA (1,478), Italy (623) & Mexico (617) were the countries with highest new deaths for last 24 hours.

Sri Lanka isolates Western Province amid Covid-19 warnings on Colombo, Coronavirus deaths rise to 46

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s has barred travel out the Western Province till November 15 as daily Coronavirus cases hit 635 and Covid-19 deaths rose by another 5 to 46, amid fresh warnings from a doctor’s group that up to five percent of Colombo residents could be infected.

Sri Lanka’s anti-Covid-19 task force said President Gotabaya Rajapaksa barred travel out of the Western province till November 15 over weekend.

Colombo Transmission

The 635 new cases confirmed on November 11, was 10 coming from foreign returnees.

It is the the third highest daily total found after positive results in the second day of testing in a factory in Minuwangoda and the second day’s tests at the Peliyagoda fish-market.

Sri Lanka’s Government Medical Officer’s Association warned that the prevalence of Coronavirus in Colombo was high and random tests were required in other areas to find the correct level of the disease.

“Out of about 400 tests randomly carried out in Colombo Municipality area – these are not high risk groups, basically random people moving around – 19 were positive,” Government Medical Officer’s Association editor Haritha Aluthge told reporters.

“What it means is that we can estimate that roughly about 5 percent of the people in the Colombo Municipality area are infected with Covid 19.”

“If we do not take the correct steps we will have to talk more about deaths than infected persons in December.”

Sri Lanka has already placed parts of Colombo are under strict isolation and Gampaha is under strict curfews. Authorities say numbers in Gampaha are going down.

Community Transmission

The GMOA warning comes as authorities still insist that there is no community transmission.

The World Health Organization says community transmission starts in cities and spreads, though it is not classified as a separate stage.

“Cities are often national and international epicentres in the COVID-19 pandemic,” the World Health Organization says.

“Cities act as centres of community transmission, as well as entry points into further country-wide transmission through national and international travel and trade. They also often serve as points for health-care surge.”

The GMOA called for inter-district travel restrictions last month, while locking down smaller areas.

Sri Lanka found the first confirmed case of the current cluster in Gampaha on October 03, but has been trying to contain the disease with lockdowns of small areas.

Authorities initially insisted that all contacts came from the Minuwangoda cluster though later it turned out that many infected persons were coming from a fish market cluster.

As early as October 10, a fisherman in a multi-day boat was found infected. The fish-market cluster was found around October 20 and authorities then put curfew in nearby areas, which are still isolated.

East Asia City Battles

There was community transmission in Wuhan, China, and authorities contained it by locking down the city and tracing people who went on holiday for Chinese New Year out of the city.

Vietnam which is far ahead in containing Coronavirus than Korea also, contained an outbreak in Da Nang city, a holiday hotspots, which started in July 26, by placing movement restrictions at the perimeter.



Authorities gave two days for holiday makers estimated at over 30,000 leave the city, then stopped flights, buses and rail.

Everyone who went out was asked to self-isolate and register with respective regional authorities. In March Sri Lanka also asked everyone who came from abroad to register and self-isolate and broght outbreak under control.

Vietnam does not have strict curfews like Sri Lanka, but used inter district movement controls, social distancing and ‘social isolation’ – a stay at home request where people are asked to shop only once a week and avoid travel.

Rising Deaths

Meanwhile Sri Lanka has appointed a committee to review rising deaths with many dying at home.

Whether tests were conducted on family members to find whether they were infected is not known.

“The director general of health services decided to appoint a committee to review these deaths and report whether these deaths occurred due to Covid 19 or due to other diseases which worsened with Covid 19 virus,” chief epidemiologist Sudath Samaraweera told reporters.

“Or whether it is due to a delay from the patients’ side or the health services side and what are the steps we can take to prevent this situation in the future.”

On November 11, five new deaths were reported.

An 80-year old from Panadura, South of Colombo had died on admission to Police hospital, becoming the 42 death. He was found to have had a heart attack and a Covid-19 infection at post-mortem, the state information office said.

A 40-year old had died on admission to the Colombo National Hospital. He was determined to have been died of a heart attack related to Covid-19.



A 45-year old from Kelaniya who was being treated at District Hospital in Hambantota from November 01, 2020 for Coronavirus had died of a heart attack.

A 68-year old female had died at home in Maligawatte, Colombo 10. She was determined to have high blood pressure and a heart attack due to Covid-19.

A 63-year old from Imbulgoda, had died while being treated at Apeksha Hospital in Maharagama. A PCR test at post-mortem had confirmed that he was infected with Covid-19. Worsening leukemia and respiratory complications were determined to be the cause of death.

All Colombo prisons are closed for two weeks, reports said, staff are not allowed to go home.

Sri Lanka has also hiked bus fares, which is a sustainable solution to carrying a lower number of passengers. (Colombo/Nov12/2020)

As of now...

Coronavirus Cases:
53,092,733

Deaths:
1,299,413

Recovered:
37,213,423

643,043 new cases world wide higher than previous day and renew the highest count per day recorded so far !

9,669 more deaths lower than yesterday.

USA (161,541), India (43,861) & Italy (37,978) are the three countries with highest no of new cases that drives the new cases. USA has recorded its highest count per day once more.

USA (1,190), Brazil (926) & Italy (636) were the countries with highest new deaths for last 24 hours.

As of now...

Coronavirus Cases:
53,738,180

Deaths:
1,309,147

Recovered:
37,519,510

656, 180 new cases world wide higher than previous day and renew the highest count per day recorded so far !

9,942 more deaths higher than yesterday.

USA (183,527), India (45,343) & Italy (40,902) are the three countries with highest no of new cases that drives the new cases. USA has recorded its highest count per day once more.

USA (1,395), France (932) & Mexico (626) were the countries with highest new deaths for last 24 hours.

As of now...

Coronavirus Cases:
54,318,729

Deaths:
1,318,038

Recovered:
37,866,568

575, 576 new cases world wide lower than previous day.

8,811 more deaths lower than yesterday.

USA (157,081), India (41,659) & Italy (37,255) are the three countries with highest no of new cases that drives the new cases.

USA (1,260), Brazil (727) & Mexico (568) were the countries with highest new deaths for last 24 hours.

As of now...

Coronavirus Cases:
54,810,316

Deaths:
1,324,320

Recovered:
38,136,086