Thiruvananthapuram district "sitting on active volcano" of coronavirus cases says Kerala tourism minister

Thiruvananthapuram, July 5 () Thiruvananthapuram district is 'sitting on an active volcano' with rising number of COVID-19 cases and there was no guarantee that there would be no community spread, tourism Minister Kadakampally Surendran said here on Sunday. He also said that the state government has decided to conduct more antigen tests in the district to check the spread of the virus.

"It's like we are sitting on top of an active volcano which can burst anytime. Just because there has been no community spread till now doesn't mean it will not occur," the minister told reporters here.

Surendran said the restrictions in force in containment zones would be tightened and food delivery boys would be tested.

Recently, a food delivery boy and a policeman in the city tested positive, prompting health department officials to implement a health protocol.

Adding to the concern of rising COVID-19 cases in the capital district, two accused lodged at a quarantine centre at nearby Varkala escaped early on Sunday morning.

Police said they were nabbed from two different areas and brought to the centre for observation as part of COVID19 protocol

Police said a search was on to nab them.

Kerala's COVID-19 tally breached the 5,000 mark on Saturday with 240 cases being reported, the highest single day surge ,with Thiruvananthapuram reporting 16 cases.

The number of cases in Thiruvananthapuram district has risen from 77 on June 25 to 109 at present, while 13,513 people are under observation.

A total of 256 people are in isolation wards of various hospitals across the district.