Kerala man admitted to hospital after jackfruit fell on head tests COVID-19 positive

Kerala Coronavirus, Kerala Covid19 Cases: Five people have died due to coronavirus in Kerala and over 95,000 are under observation. The total tally of Covid cases is 847.

A man in Kerala admitted to a hospital for treatment following injuries he suffered when a jackfruit fell on his head has ended up testing positive for coronavirus.

The 42-year-old autorickshaw driver hails from Kodom-Bellur panchayat in Kochi district. He was admitted to Kannur Medical College Hospital in Pariyaram. He had suffered spinal injuries in the freak accident.

Dr K Sudeep, superintendent of the Pariyaram Medical College in Kannur, said that the man was trying to pluck a jackfruit off a tree. One of them fell on him, injuring his spine.

“His hands and legs were weakened too. His condition required surgery. Our protocol dictates that we subject everyone who requires immediate surgery to the Covid test, just to be sure. That’s when he tested positive,” he said.

It is not clear how he contracted the viral infection, reports said.

Dr Sudeep said the man has no travel history or contact with any COVID-19 infected person.

“We are not sure if he got it through one of his passengers in the rickshaw,” he said.

The quadragenarian had, however, visited the district hospital once. The doctor suspected he could have got an infection from the district hospital.

Meanwhile, the health officials have begun to trace his immediate primary contacts and quarantine his family. As many as 18 primary contacts of the man have been identified and quarantined.

According to the Kerala government data, five people have died due to coronavirus in the state so far and over 95,000 are under observation. The total tally of Covid cases is 847, while 322 are presently under treatment.