Kerala's first COVID-19 death reported from hospital in Ernakulam

Kochi: A 69-year-old man from Kochi died this morning, becoming the first fatality in Kerala due to the novel coronavirus.

The patient, hailing from Chullickal near Fort Kochi, had returned from Dubai on March 17 and was admitted at the Ernakulam Government Medical College on March 22 with pneumonia.

He had other medical complications like hypertension and cardiac problems..

The victim’s wife and the taxi driver who drove him from the Cochin International Airport to his house are also infected and are undergoing treatment.

All the ten families in his apartment complex in Fort Kochi have been placed under home quarantine after the patient allegedly violated quarantine guidelines and interacted with other residents and used the common facilities like the elevator.