Ekiti State Government has given a vivid explanation of how the index case of coronavirus in the state contacted the virus.
According to the government, the 38-year-old man from Ekiti drove an American who arrived in the country on March 3, after which the driver and the American stayed in Oyo state before travelling to Ekiti on March 13.
This was disclosed in a statement by the State government task force on COVID-19, headed by the governor, Kayode Fayemi, which was signed by Dr Mojisola Yaya Kayode, the state Commissioner for Health.
The statement explained that the confirmed case was suspected to have been infected “while driving an American Caucasian, male, 27, who was visiting Nigeria from Richmond, Virginia, USA.
“The American Caucasian arrived in Nigeria on March 3 through the Muritala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos.
“Preliminary investigations revealed that the pair were driven by our confirmed case to Ibadan, where they stayed for two weeks, and arrived Ado Ekiti, Ekiti State on March 13.
“A day after their arrival, the American male fell ill and he was taken to a private hospital where he was referred to a tertiary hospital.
“Unfortunately, he died from complications of his illness.
“The Ekiti State Task Force on COVID-19 has already quarantined the confirmed case on admission in the State Isolation Centre.
“We have commenced the process of contact tracing, working with the Federal Ministry of Health and the World Health Organization following the team’s itinerary since they landed in Nigeria on the 3rd of March 2020.
“We have also contacted the Oyo State Government since it was recorded that they stayed in Ibadan for two weeks before arriving at Ekiti State.”
