Malappuram district saw the biggest spike ever of COVID-19 cases when 534 people tested positive on Saturday. It was the first time the district crossed 500 positive cases on a single day.
While 483 of them were found to have been infected through direct local contacts, the source of infection could not be traced in 34 cases. Among the new cases were five health workers.
Six people succumbed to the disease in the district since Friday. While a 68-year-old man died at Melmuri near Malappuram, a 61-year-old man died at Tanalur, a 62-year-old man died at Tirur, a 50-year-old man died at Parappanangadi, a 73-year-old man died at Ponnani, and a 30-year-old woman died at Puthuponnani.
District Collector K. Gopalakrishnan urged people to exercise extreme caution and to abide by the guidelines issued by the health authorities. While four cases came from other States, eight came from abroad.
However, there were 329 recoveries in the district on Saturday. Health officials said that 3,447 infected persons were currently under treatment in Malappuram and nearly 34,000 were quarantined.
In Palakkad
In Palakkad district, 349 people tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 on Saturday. Health officials said that 248 of them had contracted the virus through direct contacts. While 15 cases came from other States, one came from abroad.
The source of infection could not be traced in 85 cases. There were 129 recoveries. The number of active cases in the district rose to 2,046.
In Thrissur
As many as 351 COVID-19 cases were reported in Thrissur on Saturday. Among the new cases, 346 contracted the disease through contact. The district also reported 190 recoveries. The number of active cases is 2,709. In all, 9,783 people are in home quarantine.
Thrissur has so far reported 8,360 COVID-19 cases.
In Wayanad
As many as 95 persons tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 in Wayanad district on Saturday.
Of the total cases, 90 were infected through contact. While four came from other States, one returned from abroad.
The district has so far reported 2,519 COVID-19 cases. Of these, 1,899 have recovered. As many as 3,223 persons are under observation.
(With inputs from Palakkad, Thrissur, and Wayanad bureaus)
