VIJAYAWADA/VIZIANAGARAM: Seven more Omicron cases were reported in the state on Tuesday, taking the tally to 24. Of the seven new cases, six are returnees from abroad, while one is a traveller from Goa. Of them, two are women and five men.
The two women returned to the twin Godavari districts from Oman on December 19 and 23. A man who returned from South Sudan to Krishna district on December 23, tested positive for Omicron.
Three other men who returned from the UAE to East and West Godavari, and Krishna districts between December 25 and 29, also tested positive for the new variant. Of the total seven, only one among them was mildly symptomatic and he has been kept in hospital isolation. Dr G Hymavathi, Director of Public Health and Family Welfare, said all contacts of Omicron cases were traced and tested, and their samples were sent for genome sequencing.
In a sharp spike in daily count, AP logged 334 new Covid-19 infections from 28,311 samples tested in the 24 hours ending Tuesday at 9 am.
Strong indications that state heading for 3rd wave: Expert
This is the highest daily count after November 10, 2021. The number of new Covid cases was more than 200 on Tuesday, compared to 122 infections from 15,568 samples tested on Monday. Visakhapatnam topped the list with 80 new Covid infections, followed by Chittoor (55) and Krishna (50). Barring Kurnool, other 12 districts in the state also reported more fresh cases.
The active caseload too increased to 1,516. The number of new recoveries was 95, compared to fresh infections of 334. Visakhapatnam has the highest number of more than 300 active cases, while Prakasam has the lowest caseload of 22. The caseload of Kurnool, which declined to as low as three just a few weeks ago, has increased to 34. Nellore reported the lone fatality, taking the Covid toll to 14,499.
Reacting to the spike in fresh infections, Covid Special Officer and Andhra Medical College principal Dr. Sudhakar said indications are strong that the state is heading for a third wave. He said, “Since transmissibility of Omicron is more, the virus is spreading fast in the country and the rise in cases in Maharashtra and Delhi has proved it.’’
Meanwhile, 19 students and a teacher of a ZP High School at Kothavalasa in Vizianagaram district tested positive for Covid. All of them are asymptomatic and they are under home isolation. A two-day holiday was declared and the entire school premises was sanitised.