Minister: We are still tracing 93 co-passengers of Italian patient

Osagie Ehanire, minister of health, says 93 passengers who boarded the same Turkish Airlines flight with the Italian who imported coronavirus into Nigeria are still being traced.

Addressing a press conference in Abuja on Friday, Enahire said 55 of the 148 passengers on the flight are currently being monitored.

It is exactly one week since the Italian who arrived the country on a business trip tested positive for the virus.

He is presently being managed at the Infectious Disease Hospital in Yaba, Lagos state.

Enahire also said 21 contacts of the index case in Lagos and another 40 in Ogun are being followed up.

“The contacts of the index case are currently under supervised self-isolation and the states have provided them with the temperature tools,” he said.

“Of the 148 passengers on the manifest of the index case flight, 55 are actively being followed up.

“The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) and Port Health Services are in touch with them to monitor their temperatures and possible appearance of COVID-19 symptoms.

“We are tracing out others. I urge any passengers of the Turkish Airlines Flight to Lagos on February 24 listening to me to contact us on 080097000-10.”

The minister asked Nigerians to remain calm, saying the federal government is doing all that is necessary to handle the outbreak.

TheCable had reported that the number of persons infected with coronavirus globally has exceeded 100,000 in 91 countries.