COVID-19: Nasarawa records 13 new cases, extends lockdown.

Nasarawa state has recorded 13 new confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19).

Governor Abdullahi Sule made the disclosure on Friday in Lafia, during a press briefing to give update on the pandemic.

The governor explained that Four out of the 13 new cases were contacts of the late state lawmaker from Nasarawa Local Government Area, Alhaji Suleiman Adamu, who died from COVID-19 complications on April 30.

Consequently, the governor announced an extension of the three days lockdown earlier imposed on Nasarawa LGA on Wednesday, May 6 to Monday, May 11.

According to the governor, extension of the lockdown was to ensure more contact tracing of all confirmed cases in the area in order to prevent further spread of the pandemic in the state.

He further said that the Nine other cases confirmed by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) on Friday, were from those who recently returned from Kano and Lagos states and were quarantined at a holding centre in Lafia.

Sule added that with the 13 new cases, Nasarawa state had so far recorded 25 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and one death.

“What is more disturbing is the number we received from Nasarawa local government area alone, which is four out of the twenty samples tested from there. Most of these samples tested were from those who had contact with the late house of assembly member.

“For this reason I want to call on the people of Nasarawa local government area to be patient as we have to extend the lockdown for another three days so as to reduce the chances of community transmission of the virus,” he said.

He also appealed to residents of the state to continue to adhere strictly to government’s directives aimed at curbing the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic in the state.

Supreme reports that as at Friday, May 8, Nasarawa state has 24 active cases of COVID-19.

Photo credit: Leadership Newspapers