Keta Municipal Assembly records first suspected case of coronavirus

Correspondence from Volta Region

A suspected case of Covid-19 has been recorded in the Keta Municipality of the Volta Region.

The suspect, a 41 years old sailor is said to have been at sea for over 30 days in a fishing vessel.

Fishermen who brought the man into town from the sea narrated that they went fishing at the dawn of yesterday, April 2 and saw the fishing vessel at sea. According to them, the men in the fishing vessel who are all believed to be Chinese pleaded with them [fishermen] to take the suspect together with some quantity of fish to the shore and upon reaching the shore, they should sell the fish and give the money to the suspect so he can go to his hometown.

The man who is currently in quarantine at the Keta Municipal Hospital’s holding facility’s temperature was taken and reads 39°C according to sources at the hospital.

Speaking to the medical superintendent of the Hospital, Dr. A Ekuban, she said blood samples of the suspect have been taken and sent to the Noguchi Memorial Institute to be tested for Covid-19 and they are hoping the results will be out in soon.

Dr. Ekuban said the five fishermen who brought the suspect to shore are also being monitored as contacts traced and will be quarantined till the results of the test is out before other steps will be taken to have them tested or otherwise.

She however, called on residents of the Keta Municipality to go about their normal duties without fear but urged them to adhere to the WHO and the President of Ghana’s directives of regular hand washing, frequent use of sanitizers, social distancing among others to help fight the Covid-19 pandemic.