Country’s state-run disease monitoring wing Institute of Epidemiology, Diseases Control and Research (IEDCR) has requested elderly people, along with foreign returnees, to maintain self-quarantine as it the most viable way to remain safe from coronavirus disease, COVID-19.

IEDCR Director Dr Meerjady Sabrina Flora came up with the statement at a press briefing at the auditorium of the institute in city’s Mohakhali area. IEDCR’s Principal Scientific Officer Dr ASM Alamgir was present at the briefing, reports BSS.

Dr Flora said no new coronavirus case found in the country after confirming the initial three, and they (the affected persons) too are doing well.

“We have tested samples of total seven persons in the last 24 hours and all of them were found negative. We have kept eight people in isolation and four others, who had came into contact with those three Coronavirus patients, have been kept on ‘institutional’ quarantine,” she added.

The IEDCR director repeatedly emphasised raising awareness about the lethal virus, saying without awareness and practising good habits, there is mainly no other way to contain this deadly virus as yet.

“I would like to urge all the recent foreign returnees to remain on self-quarantine for 14 days. Do it for the sake of yourself, your loved ones, society and the country. Do not go outside without any emergency, if you have to go, please wear masks,” she added.

While talking about the traffic congestion on the hotline numbers of IEDCR, Dr Flora said the total numbers of the hotline were raised to 12 to ease the deadlock of incoming calls.

IEDCR has received a total of 2,778 calls in the last 24 hours regarding COVID-19, she said.

The director said one Bangladeshi national is in hospital in UAE, one in Italy and two in Singapore after getting infected by Covid-19 and her office is maintaining close contact with the Bangladesh missions abroad and Ministry of Foreign Affairs in this regard.

Earlier on March 9, Director General of Directorate General of Health Services Prof Abul Kalam Azad talked about opening separate units at public hospitals across the country, while separate cells will be opened in private hospitals to take care of COVID-19 patients.

He had also urged all not to get involved in the chaos regarding face masks and hand sanitisers, adding, shortage of these products will be mitigated very soon.

Repeating her last statement regarding showing sympathy with the family members and neighbours of foreign returnees, Dr Flora today again said that,“…all the people returning from other countries are not infected with the coronavirus. We are continuously saying this because the persons who are coming from abroad are facing odd situation here,”

Earlier on March 8, IEDCR confirmed that three Bangladeshis — two male and one Female — were detected with coronavirus (COVID-19). Among the three, two of them had returned from Italy recently, she said on that day.

On March 4, in a bid to control the spread of COVID-19, the government restricted the entry of people from four countries – Italy, South Korea, Japan and Kuwait – without the virus-free medical certificates.