Police officer quarantined in Feydhoo tests positive for coronavirus

A police officer under home quarantine in the Feydhoo district of Addu City has tested positive for the new coronavirus.

An Addu City councilor who spoke to Sun said the police officer arrived in Feydhoo on Thursday.

“The police officer works in Male’. His sample tested positive. Contact tracing to identify primary contacts is in progress. Six more police officers have been identified through contact tracing,” said the councilor.

Commissioner of Police Mohamed Hameed said in a statement on Thursday that a total of 93 officers and staffers employed by Maldives Police Service have tested positive for the new coronavirus. 56 of the cases are active cases.

The police officer who tested positive on Saturday marks the first confirmed coronavirus case among people in home quarantine in Addu.

Testing and treatment for the new coronavirus in Addu is available in the Addu Equatorial Hospital.

The case in Addu comes after Fuvahmulah City, confirmed its first coronavirus case last week.

Heath Protection Agency requires all those who travel from the greater Male’ region to residential islands to undergo 14 days of mandatory quarantine and testing clearing them of the new coronavirus before they are allowed to mingle with the local population.

Several people who have travelled to residential islands from Male’ – which is experiencing a surge in coronavirus cases with the relaxation of the lockdown – have tested positive in recent days.

Following the surge in cases, authorities have implemented a temporary ban on travel of persons from Male’ to other residential islands, except those who travel to the capital to access essential services such as healthcare.

Wearing masks when out in public in the greater Male’ region and residential islands with confirmed coronavirus cases is now mandatory, and the wearing of masks in all residential islands, including those with no confirmed cases has been declared highly recommended.

Maldives has 4,898 confirmed coronavirus cases, including 129 new cases recorded on Saturday. 2,791 of the patients have since recovered, while 19 have died from complications.

The country now has 2,088 active cases. 144 of the patients are hospitalized.