Lagos records three deaths from coronavirus as NCDC predicts a nationwide spread

The Lagos State government has confirmed three new deaths from coronavirus-related complications, bringing the total number of fatalities in the state to 10.
According to Lagos Commissioner for Health, Professor Akin Abayomi, through his Twitter handle on Thursday, the latest deseased are three males, who are 51, 52 and 62 years old.
“Unfortunately, Lagos recorded three additional deaths from #COVID-19 related complications. The deceased are males aged 51, 52 and 62.
“One of the dead; a medical doctor had contact with an infected person who recently returned to the country.
“Other victims have no travel history or record of contact with any infected person. Total #COVID-19 related deaths are now 10. I hereby urge Lagosians to remain vigilant and report any concern about #COVID-19 infection in our communities.”
A medical doctor, Emeka Chugbo, was announced dead at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital on Wednesday.
He was said to have died after contracting the virus from a patient he was treating at his private facility.
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control as of 11:20 pm on Wednesday said Nigeria had recorded 12 fatalities from the coronavirus.
This was after announcing that two new COVID-19 deaths were recorded on Wednesday without mentioning the state.
But NCDC has updated the number of deaths recorded in Lagos to seven, reflecting the two new deaths recorded on Wednesday.
The table, which was updated before the Lagos State announcement, read that of the initial 12 cases, seven were recorded in Lagos, two in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, and one each in Edo, Katsina and Delta States.
Meanwhile, the NCDC has predicted a nationwide spread of coronavirus in Nigeria.
Nigeria currently has 407 cases of coronavirus with 22 states, including Abuja being affected. The NCDC, however, believes it is a matter of time before the virus spreads to other states.
“Now, COVID-19 is on a much larger scale – at the moment in 22 states but it will grow to every state in Nigeria, there is no reason why it won’t – it is a respiratory virus,” NCDC director-general Chikwe Ihekweazu said on a Channels Television programme Sunrise Daily.
With 128 persons discharged after full recovery from the disease and 12 deaths recorded, Ihekweazu believes Nigeria has done well in containing the latest global pandemic similarly to Lassa Fever.
“We have responded to Lassa smoothly and nobody shut down the country because it wasn’t necessary, the response was fairly efficient,” Ihekweazu said.
He said the centre has already expanded its facilities nationwide for testing and treating of patients.
“We just activated the lab in Kano a few days ago. So, these are the results of the increased testing capacity that we are providing for the country.”
He believes the tests that the centre in collaboration with state governments has done in the country are fairly robust but can be improved upon.