Courtesy Adaderana

Eighty-one more individuals have tested positive for the novel coronavirus, confirmed the Ministry of Health.

The new cases jump the count of coronavirus cases reported in Sri Lanka to 1,453.

All 81 cases are reported among persons who are undergoing quarantine upon arriving in the country from overseas.

Previously today (27), 53 Sri Lanka Navy personnel were reported to have contracted the virus.

Accordingly, 134 new cases have been detected in the country within the day.

On that account, the number of active coronavirus cases who are under medical care stands at 711 according to the Epidemiology Unit’s tally.

In the meantime, the coronavirus recoveries reported in the country reached 732 earlier today as 20 patients were discharged from the Infectious Disease Hospital (02), Welikanda Base Hospital (01), Colombo East Base Hospital (05), Navy Hospital (10) and Minuwangoda Base Hospital (02).

Sri Lanka witnessed the highest daily surge of virus cases on Tuesday (26), with a record total of 137 new infections. Out of these cases, 127 were returnees from Kuwait who are at quarantine facilities while 10 of them were navy personnel, who are also under quarantine. Accordingly, a total of 288 persons who returned from overseas have tested positive for the virus so far.

Sri Lanka reported its 10th death on Monday (25) as a 51-year-old woman who had arrived in the country from Kuwait succumbed to the disease.