(@FahadShabbir)

Ramzan Kadyrov, the head of Russia's Chechnya, said on Wednesday that the republic's borders and airspace would be completely closed after April 5 due to the coronavirus pandemic and the launch of a republic- wide disinfection

GROZNY (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 01st April, 2020) Ramzan Kadyrov, the head of Russia's Chechnya, said on Wednesday that the republic's borders and airspace would be completely closed after April 5 due to the coronavirus pandemic and the launch of a republic- wide disinfection.

"After April 5, entry and exit from the republic, both by land and by air, will be completely stopped, except for food and medical transportation, we will begin sanitary disinfection of settlements," Kadyrov said in a live stream on Instagram.

He added that cases of emergency evacuation would be reviewed on an individual basis, considering the capacities of charter flights. For that, Kadyrov advised contacting the coronavirus response centers. Those who need to continue commuting for work will receive special passes.

"Whoever wants to return to or leave the republic in the near future should do it before April 5, after which we will not let anyone pass. It is about the safety of my people, the republic, and I must take decisive measures in this situation," Kadyrov said.

Earlier in the day, the head of the department of Russian consumer rights watchdog Rospotrebnadzor in Chechnya, Rita Termulaeva, confirmed to Sputnik the first coronavirus-related death was recorded in the republic.

"A woman born in 1938 with a confirmed diagnosis died in the morning," Termulaeva said.

According to the Chechen Health Ministry, the woman arrived from Moscow on March 24, where she had met with her daughter, who returned from abroad.

To date, there are nine confirmed COVID-19 cases in Chechnya.