Health Protection Agency (HPA) has revealed two more individuals have passed away from COVID-19 in the Maldives in the past 24 hours, taking the COVID-19 death toll in the country to 60.
HPA revealed a 63-year-old Maldivian female had passed away at 01:04 a.m on February 20 while undergoing treatment for COVID-19 at the DH11 facility in Dharumavantha Hospital. HPA revealed another 67-year-old Maldivian male who was also admitted at the DH11 facility had passed away at 10:28 a.m. on February 20. It was later revealed the deceased man was veteran actor Hassan Manik (Koyya) who has served the Maldivian film industry for nearly 40 years.
With the latest deaths, the COVID-19 death toll in the Maldives has risen to 60. This includes 52 Maldivians and 8 expatriates.
Meanwhile, the number of COVID-19 cases in the Maldives continues to increase sharply, with another 127 new cases reported between 1800hrs on February 18 and 1800hrs on February 19. This includes 98 cases from the Greater Male' Region, 10 cases from inhabited islands in atolls, 17 cases from operational resorts and 2 cases from liveaboards.
With the latest update, the total number of cases reported in the Maldives has risen to 18,467, including 2,446 active cases. There are currently 159 COVID-19 patients undergoing treatment in hospitals or medical facilities.
COVID-19 cases in the Maldives have increased sharply since the beginning of January. As part of efforts to contain the spread of the disease, HPA has tightened restrictions in the Maldives, with curfews imposed in the Male' region.
HPA has requested the public to follow the instructions from authorities and to strictly observe personal safety measures in order to avoid the healthcare system from getting overloaded.