Dhuvaafaru under ‘monitoring’ after 3 test positive for coronavirus

Health Protection Agency (HPA), on Saturday, implemented restrictive measures at R. Dhuvaafaru after a family of three who had been released from home quarantine after travelling from Male’ City tested positive for the new coronavirus in follow-up tests.

The three who tested positive are from the same family; a couple and their son. Meanwhile, another one of their children who had also been in home quarantine with them has tested negative.

Dhuvaafaru Council president Ibrahim Naseer told Sun the family had travelled to Dhuvaafaru on June 19, and following which they completed 14 days of mandatory home quarantine and were tested. He said they were released from home quarantine two days back after Health Protection Agency (HPA) told them they had tested negative.

Ibrahim Naseer said that their samples were resent at HPA’s request, and that the agency told them earlier this Saturday that three of them have tested positive.

He said that while they had lived in the residence alone, they had mingled with the local residential population after they were released from home quarantine two days back.

“This is of great concern. A lot of people met with them after they were released from quarantine. I am unable to give an accurate estimate of how many people they may have met,” said Ibrahim Naseer.

Dhuvaafaru has been placed under ‘monitoring’ by HPA, and access in and out of the island without the permission of the agency has been banned, as health officials conduct contact tracing to identify others who may have been exposed to the virus.

The cases in Dhuvaafaru come after a nine-year-old girl in home quarantine in A. A. Thoddoo tested positive on Friday, followed by two people in home quarantine in H. Dh. Nolhivaram who tested positive late last week. They were all in home quarantine after travelling from Male’ City – the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak in Maldives.

Maldives has confirmed 2,664 coronavirus cases, including 47 cases identified this Saturday.

2,268 patients have since recovered, while 13 have died from complications.