Burundi records first coronavirus death
Tuesday April 14 2020
Burundi on Monday reported its first coronavirus fatality in the country, the health ministry said.
“A person who tested positive for Covid-19 and was hospitalised in intensive care at Kira Hospital died following complications related to other associated pathologies,” said Jean Bosco Girukwishaka, the Health ministry’s spokesperson.
The patient is believed to have been residing in Bwiza, a neighbourhood in Bujumbura.
“Doctors came and tested all his family members and we just recorded our names in a book,” said one of the neighbours, who preferred anonymity.
Burundi has five confirmed Covid-19 patients since it reported its first case on March 31.
Though the government has stepped up measures including the suspension of flights, screening and quarantining of travellers, it has not banned public gatherings or imposed other movement restrictions.
The government has however urged citizens to wash their hands, refrain from hugs and handshakes, and has provided a hotline for reporting of any suspected case.
The Covid-19 disease, which was first reported in Wuhan, China in December, has killed at least 119,779 people worldwide with at least 1,929,518 infections.
Some 453,018 people have recovered globally, according to Worldometer's count on Tuesday.