Niger State Records First Coronavirus Death

The Niger State government on Saturday, announced that the state had recorded its first death from the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

Health Commissioner and Hospital Services, Muhammad Makusidi, who announced this in Minna, the state capital, said the deceased was among the eight new cases, which were confirmed by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC).

According to Makusidi, eight people were positive, while 14 were negative, out of the 22 results received from the NCDC.

A statement issued by Chief Press Secretary to Governor Sani Bello, Mary Noel-Berje and posted on the facebook page of the Niger State government, said, the commissioner also disclosed that seven out of the eight positive cases, were Almajiri returnees from Zaria in Kaduna State, adding that the “deceased was a taxi driver plying Suleja-Abua route.”

“He explained that the deceased who is 40 years of age was diabetic, adding that he died shortly on arrival at the Suleja- General Hospital,” the statement said.

“The Commissioner said a postmortem sample was taken for test and it returned positive, stressing that contact tracing will commence with immediate effect.

“So far, Niger State has a total of 22 confirmed cases as at 16th of May 2020 with one mortality.”