Coronavirus pandemic | Passenger onboard Chennai-Coimbatore flight tests positive
Swab test results on May 26 revealed that the 24-year-old man had contracted the virus, following which he was shifted to the ESI Hospital.
May 27, 2020 / 07:58 AM IST
A passenger onboard a Chennai-Coimbatore IndiGo flight on May 25 tested positive for COVID-19.
On May 25, over 130 passengers arrived in Coimbatore from Chennai and Delhi after the Centre allowed resumption of domestic flight services and all of them underwent the necessary test for coronavirus in line with the health protocol guidelines of the Tamil Nadu government. Though the other passengers tested negative, they are likely to be home quarantined for 14 days, officials told PTI.
Swab test results on May 26 revealed that the 24-year-old man had contracted the virus, following which he was shifted to the ESI Hospital.
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He was working in the room service wing of a star hotel in Chennai. Though Coimbatore witnessed a positive case after a gap of 21 days with this latest one, it will be added to the Chennai count, health department officials said.
Domestic air services resumed in the country on May 25, after a gap of two months when a coronavirus-induced lockdown was enforced in the country on March 25, shutting down various sectors, including rail and aviation.
In a statement Indigo confirmed the news: "We received confirmation from the Coimbatore airport doctor that a passenger who travelled on 6E 381 from Chennai to Coimbatore on 25th May evening, has tested positive for COVID-19. He is currently quarantined at ESI state medical facility at Coimbatore. He was seated on-board the aircraft with all precautionary measures including face mask, face shield and gloves, as were the other passengers. Additionally, no one else was seated in his vicinity, significantly reducing the possibility of transmission."
"All our aircraft are regularly sanitized as a standard operating procedure, and the aircraft operating this flight was also immediately disinfected as per protocol. The operating crew has been grounded for 14 days and we are in the process of notifying other passengers as per the government guidelines, to ensure safety of our passengers and staff," it added.
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(With inputs from PTI)