Moses Ofodeme
Nigeria is reportedly in touch with around 100 people who may have been exposed to an Italian man who is the country’s first coronavirus patient; the Lagos state health commissioner said on Sunday.
The Italian, arrived in Lagos on February 24 from Milan on a Turkish Airline flight that had a connection in Istanbul.
The following day he travelled to neighbouring Ogun state and was in the country; for almost two full days before being isolated.
In an interview, the Lagos State Health Commissioner; Akin Abayomi revealed the number of people Nigerian authorities had been in touch with who may have had contact with the man.
“It is around 100 people but that number is increasing every minute.”
Abayomi further revealed that the patient was clinically stable and had no signs of respiratory symptoms; which could make his infection contagious.
The commissioner stated this at the Emergency Operation Centre at the Mainland Hospital in Yaba; where the patient was being quarantined.
“By Saturday, his symptoms had subsided. He hasn’t developed any respiratory symptoms and we are quite happy about that; because if he has respiratory symptoms like coughing and sneezing, which makes the disease more contagious,” Abayomi said; adding that the 100 persons the Italian had contact with were being jointly monitored by Lagos and Ogun states.
Earlier in an interview, Abayomi said the authorities had identified the hotel room; where the Italian patient lodged on Monday night.
“We’re going there this morning (Saturday) to decontaminate the room and the entire hotel. We will identify all the people who had contact with him in the hotel,” he said.
The Italian man, who is being treated at a hospital in the Yaba district of Lagos; works as a vendor for cement company Lafarge Africa Plc in the southwestern state of Ogun.
The coronavirus case, which is the first in sub-Saharan Africa; has raised serious concerns that the virus could spread quickly in a region where health systems are already overburdened with cases of malaria, measles, Ebola and other infectious diseases.
