E-Paper
78-year-old woman is second Covid-19 fatality in Mohali
She had acute hypertension and diabetes and collapsed on reaching Kharar civil hospital on April 7; three days after her death, her test reports show she had coronavirus disease, too
A 78-year-old woman from the Mundi Kharar area of Mohali district, who died at the civil hospital in Kharar on April 7, has tested positive for Covid-19.
Mohali civil surgeon Dr Manjit Singh said the test report of the patient, Raj Kumari, was received on Friday, taking the count of coronavirus cases in the district to 48.
This is the second death due to Covid-19 in Mohali. Earlier, a 65-year-old man from Nayagaon had died due to Covid-19 at Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh, on March 31.
The elderly woman collapsed and died on reaching the Kharar civil hospital on April 7. She was brought to the hospital due to acute hypertension and diabetes, but as a precautionary measure, her samples were taken and the reports received on Friday confirmed that she had Covid-19, the civil surgeon said.
Her husband alleged that she had been feeling sick for 10 days before her death, and during their visits to the hospital, they requested the doctors to take her sample for Covid-19 testing, but they turned down their appeals as she did not have any travel history. “We again requested them on April 7, but they only got her blood tests done, and she died 15 minutes later,” he alleged.
On the allegations, Dr Singh said the patient visited the hospital with no symptoms of coronavirus. “She was suffering from acute hypertension and diabetes. We took her sample of Covid-19 just as a precautionary measure,” he added.
FAMILY IN ISOLATION, WOMAN CREMATED
Dr Singh said the woman was cremated following the protocol under the observation of health officials.
Her family was provided with protection kits and are in isolation. A health department team collected their samples and the area around their house was sealed. The area is being sanitised.
Deputy commissioner Girish Dayalan said samples of some doctors at the Kharar civil hospital were also taken.
DEAD BIHAR MAN’S SAMPLE COLLECTED
A 27-year-old Bihar man was found dead in Bhaggomajra village in Kharar on Friday. Suspecting him of being infected with coronavirus, the health department collected his sample after his death. The report is awaited. According to the deceased’s neighbours, the youth had been complaining of breathlessness for several days and had also made multiple visits to the Kharar civil hospital, but was given treatment for common flu. On Thursday night, his condition deteriorated and he died on Friday morning, following which the police were informed. The youth was living in the village on rent for the past three months. He was cremated by the district administration in line with the protocol for suspected patients.
