COVID-19: Tamil Nadu sees spike of 17 new cases, tally now 67

In a spike, as many as 17 people tested positive for coronavirus, the highest so far in a single day in Tamil Nadu and there are totally 67 positive cases, Chief Minister K Palaniswami said here on Monday.

The tally, which stood at 50 on Sunday saw fresh cases from a couple of regions in Tamil Nadu.

The new cases include 10 from Erode, Palaniswami told reporters at the Secretariat here adding additional personal protective equipment like N-95 masks for the health personnel have been ordered.

The 10 men from Erode have a travel history to Delhi, he said.

A government release said they had contact with two Thailand nationals who are being treated at Perundurai Medical College Hospital in Erode District.

Further, the release said, of the remaining seven new cases, four were Chennai-based 'family contacts' of a US returnee who had tested positive. Being treated at a private hospital here, the four persons include two women, a 15-year old girl and a 20-year old man.

A 25-year old man is a family contact of a positive patient he has been admitted at the Government Rajaji Medical College Hospital in Madurai.

The other two new positive people are a 50-year old woman from downtown Broadway here and a 42-year old man of Karur district with a travel history to Delhi.

They are being treated at the Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital here and at the Karur Government Medical College Hospital respectively.

The Chief Minister said migrant workers stranded in Tamil Nadu have already been provided food and shelter apart from medical help, he said.