A man who was under surveillance for COVID-19 fled from the isolation ward at Pathanamthitta General Hospital on Monday evening around 6 pm. At midnight on Tuesday, authorities traced him and brought him back to the hospital. The man slipped out of the ward, and hospital authorities began searching for him when his bed was empty for a while.
Pathanamthitta District Medical Officer KJ Reena confirmed that the man was back in the hospital. Pathanamthitta District Collector PB Noohu told TNM that the man, who in his early 30s, was traced to Vadasserikkara, around 28kms from Pathanamthitta.
“I had given directions to the Superintendent of Police and the police traced him by midnight. He has mild symptoms. But, he had primary contact with the family which tested positive for coronavirus. It is possible that he fled because it is tough for someone his age to spend so many days without having contact with anyone,” the collector added.
On Monday, a man who was in the isolation ward at a hospital in Mangaluru also fled the hospital before he was tested positive for the virus. He too was traced by authorities by evening. The man had flown in to Mangaluru from Dubai on Sunday night. He was screened at the Mangaluru International Airport and was then taken to the Wenlock District Hospital .
As of Monday, 116 people were under surveillance in Kerala, and 967 are under home quarantine. A total of 149 people are in isolation in various hospitals.
Across India, a total of 47 individuals have tested positive for coronavirus. The latest cases came from Pune. Prior to that, a techie from Bengaluru, who had traveled to India via Dubai from Austin, Texas in the United States, also tested positive.