Published 21:54 IST, May 17th 2020
COVID-19 cases in Mumbai surge close to 20,000 mark with 1571 new patients
With 1571 novel coronavirus cases being reported in Mumbai on May 17, the total number of cases surged to 19,967.38 more deaths were also reported in the day.
With 1571 novel coronavirus cases being reported in Mumbai on Sunday, May 17, the total number of cases surged to 19,967. The tally includes 590 COVID-19 patients whose laboratory reports from May 10 to May 14 were received in the day. 38 more persons died owing to the novel coronavirus on Sunday out of which 23 had morbidities. Thus, a total of 734 casualties have been reported in Mumbai so far. Meanwhile, 206 patients were discharged in the day taking the total number of recovered to 5,012.
The Public Health Department of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation explained that the testing was taking place as per the ICMR guidelines. For instance, any person having a fever, cough, or breathing difficulty shall be tested only after producing a prescription from a registered medical practitioner. Moreover, it stated that close contacts of confirmed cases with symptoms, all pregnant women (expecting delivery in 4-5 days) coming from containment zones, patients on haemodialysis with symptoms are being tested. The BMC stressed that COVID-19 testing was neither required for persons completing home quarantine duration nor at the time of discharge for mild or moderate cases from hospitals.
COVID-19 treatment facilities to be ramped up
Speaking to the media earlier in the day, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation Commissioner Iqbal Chahal revealed that the civic body shall soon increase the bed capacity for COVID-19 treatment to one lakh in Mumbai. Chahal mentioned that an 800-bed facility at the MMRDA ground in Bandra-Kurla complex will start functioning from May 18 onwards. Noting that the parking lot at the Mumbai airport could be used to accommodate 50,000 beds, the BMC Commissioner also said that beds could be put up at two parking lots near Santacruz and Breach Candy Hospital.
Additionally, he dismissed the possibility of converting Wankhede Stadium into a quarantine facility. To buttress his point, he cited that an open ground would not be useful for this purpose during the upcoming monsoon in Mumbai. Highlighting that most of the COVID-19 cases were being reported from the 690 containment zones in Mumbai, he informed the reporters that the civic body's ambulance strength had been increased from 80 to 350.
Updated 14:49 IST, May 18th 2020