-

Another 7 returnees from Italy have been diagnosed positive for coronavirus bringing the total number of cases in the country to 18, stated the Director-General of Health Dr. Anil Jasinghe.

They had been in quarantine at the Kandakadu quarantine facility.

The identified persons are all male and are currently receiving treatment at the Polonnaruwa hospital.

Earlier today (15), another 45-year-old male was tested positive for the virus. He had been on the same tour in Germany with the person who had previously been diagnosed with the disease.

He is currently receiving treatment at Infectious Diseases Hospital (IDH) in Angoda.

On Tuesday (10), the first Sri Lankan coronavirus (COVID-19) case in the country was identified. This patient turned out to be a 52-year-old tour guide who had worked with a group of Italian tourists. He is receiving treatment at the Infectious Disease Hospital (IDH).

Two days later, it was reported that a second individual, who had stayed with the aforementioned tour guide, was tested positive for coronavirus.

Subsequently, three more cases were reported yesterday (13), bringing the total number of Covid-19-infected persons in the country to five. One of them is a 41-year-old Sri Lankan male who had arrived from Germany. He is admitted to the IDH Hospital.

The other two patients are from the group of people who were quarantined at the facility in Kandakadu.

One of them is a 37-year-old who had arrived from Italy and he is currently being treated at the Polonnaruwa Hospital. The other is a 43-year-old male who also arrived from Italy. He is being treated at IDH.

On March 14, Dr. Jasinghe announced three more confirmed cases of coronavirus in the country.

One is a 44-year-old from the quarantine facility at Kandakadu and he is currently receiving treatment at the District General Hospital in Polonnaruwa, according to Dr. Jasinghe. The other patient, aged 43, is from Nattandiya and he was not identified at a quarantine facility, Dr. Jasinghe had said. He is reportedly receiving treatment at the Provincial General Hospital in Kurunegala.

The 42-year-old eighth patient was identified at the quarantine centre in Kandakadu and is currently receiving treatment at Polonnaruwa Hospital. These three patients had returned from Italy.

Later on the same day, a 56-year-old woman returning from Italy and a 17-year-old girl who is a relative of a coronavirus-positive patient, were diagnosed with the virus.