16 new COVID-19 cases - the highest spike to date- have been registered on Sunday, the Health Protection Agency (HPA) has revealed.
All new cases are of expatriates: 14 Bangladeshi nationals and 2 Indian nationals. This brings the total number of positive cases in the capital Male' to 31, all identified within four days of discovery of the first case of local transmission in the Maldives. The total figure includes 14 Maldivian nationals.
Of the 14 Bangladeshi cases announced on Sunday, one had presented himself to the flu clinic with symptoms, and is not known to be linked to any existing cluster. The remaining 13 Bangladeshi nationals are from another cluster linked to a 37 year old local woman. The two Indian nationals, both AC repair technicians at Bright Brothers company, are believed to be from a new cluster.
While the index case has not been identified thus far, health officials believe the identified cases stem from four different clusters. Authorities are now conducting extensive contact tracing.
