Coronavirus Update: Spiking death, infection

By Mukhtar Alam
(Pakistan News & Features Services)

Spiking speedily, the COVID-19 fatality tally surpassed 800 on June 13 when the health authorities confirmed deaths of another 23 patients across the province, with 2,262 new infections registered across the province.

According to COVID-19 data, Sindh witnessed as many as 241 coronavirus related deaths in a span of 10 days. 

The province had a total 575 deaths till June 4, which climbed to 696 on June 9, 795 on June 12 and 816 on June 13, with an overall fatality rate of 1.58% due to infections. 

The maximum 19 patients, comprising of 14 men and five women, died at Karachi during the last 24 hours ending at 9 am on June 13. 

The deceased men were in the age brackets of 45 to 88 years, while women who died aged from 40-78 years. A woman of 25 years lost her life to COVID-19 at Badin while another woman of 49 years died at Khairpur. Another 74-year-old man passed away at Shikarpur.

In addition, a 20-year-old man from among the corona positive cases who returned to the country recently also lost his life. 

However, the health department did not mention his exact place of death in its routine report, which also failed to categorize other deaths too in terms of hospitals. 

Another official report, update on June 13, revealed that as many as 629 COVID-19 patients died at 32 hospitals across the province so far, including Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (87), Sindh Institute of Urology and Transplantation (87), DUHS Hospital (78), the Aga Khan University Hospital (75), Civil Hospital Karachi (67), Indus Hospital Korangi (64), Ziauddin Hospital Clifton (41), Liaquat University of Medical and Health Sciences Hyderabad (17), Lyari General Hospital (16)), PNS Shifa Karachi (15), Gambat Institute of Medical Science (12) and other hospitals.

In all 10,881 people were tested for the lethal virus during the last 24 hours, while the infection rate came as 20.78%, against 21.38% of June 12. 

Karachi reported 1,813 new infections, followed by Larkana (111), Hyderabad (77), Sukkur (55), Ghotki (52), Khairpur (30), Mirpurkhas (29), Shikarpur (25), Jamshoro (13), Sanghar (11), Naushero Feroze (9), Badin (8), Tando M Khan (7), Dadu (5), Matiari (5), Shaheed Benazirabad (3), Sujawal (3), Jacobabad (2), Thatta (1), Tando Allahyar (1) and Kashmore (1). 

The proportion of COVID-19 infected women in the overall 51,518 provincial infections was calculated at 28.7% compared to 71.1% that of men.

The Sindh Chief Minister, Syed Murad Ali Shah, in his routine message, regretted that coronavirus was growing almost in every district of Sindh. 

“People should strictly follow the preventive measures. Protect your and other’s lives by observing the standard operating procedures,” he reminded. 

As of June 13, the district wise breakdown of total reported cases, since February 26, came as Karachi-six districts (41,355), Hyderabad (1,598), Sukkur (1,546), Larkana (1,196), Ghotki (1,168), Khairpur (935), Shikarpur (515), Jacobabad (386), Shaheed Benazirabad (373), Sanghar (294), Jamshoro (278), Kamber Shahdadkot (235), Dadu (229), Kashmore (202), Mirpurkhas (199), Badin (154), Sujawal (117), Tando Mohammad Khan (109), Thatta (85), Naushehro Feroze (85), Matiari (75), Tharparkar (71), Umerkot (45) and Tando Allahyar (39). 

In the meantime 24,387 patients recovered from the diseases, while 26,315 were under treatment which included 82 quarantined, 1,698 in hospitals, including 539 in critical condition and 60 on ventilators and 24,525 at homes.