Kerala records highest single-day spike of 8,830 COVID cases on Wednesday, 87% via contact

8,830 persons tested positive for coronavirus in Kerala on Wednesday. This is the highest single-day spike reported in the state.

Of the new cases, 7,695 contracted the virus through contact while 58 had come from abroad and 164 from other states. The source of 784 contact cases is not known.

123 healthworkers too tested positive for the virus. They include 33 from Kannur, 32 from Thiruvananthapuram, 13 from Kasaragod, 11 from Kottayam, 6 from Ernakulam, 5 each from Pathanamthitta and Wayanad, 4 each from Kollam and Thrissur, 3 each from Palakkad and Alappuzha, and 2 each from Malappuram and Kozhikode. 6 INHS workers in Ernakulam too contracted the virus.

With this, active cases in the state now stands at 67,061.

23 deaths were also reported in the state. With this, COVID death toll in Kerala rose to 742. More deaths were reported, but the State is yet to ascertain them as COVID deaths. Tests are underway at National Institute of Virology in Alappuzha.

Ernakulam reported the most cases (1,056) while Thiruvananthapuram continued its worrying trend with 986 cases.

Here's the district-wise break-up of today's cases:

Ernakulam 1056 (contact cases - 896)

Thiruvananthapuram 986 (835)

Malappuram 977 (877)

Kozhikode 942 (910)

Kollam 812 (808)

Thrissur 808 (781)

Alappuzha 679 (658)

Palakkad 631 (413)

Kannur 519 (318)

Kottayam 442 (422)

Kasaragod 321 (286)

Pathanamthitta 286 (195)

Wayanad 214 (196)

Idukki 157 (105)

With this, number of active cases in the state rises to 67,061.

Recoveries

3,536 recoveries were also reported in the state. So far, 1,28,224 have been cured of the virus.

Here's the district-wise break-up of today's recoveries:

Thiruvananthapuram 379

Kollam 295

Pathanamthitta 204

Alappuzha 302

Kottayam 128

Idukki 21

Ernakulam 263

Thrissur 155

Palakkad 206

Malappuram 601

Kozhikode 589

Wayanand 51

Kannur 182

Kasaragod 160

There are currently 2,40,884 people under observation across the state. Of them, 2,11,294 are under home/institutional quarantine while 29,590 in hospitals. A total of 3,468 people were admitted to the hospital today.

In wake of COVID's rampant spread, the State had ramped up testing. 63,682 samples were tested during the last 24 hours. A total of 29,25,734 samples have so far been sent for testing. In addition, as part of Sentinel Surveillance, 2,04,349 samples were also sent for testing from priority groups, including health workers, guest workers, and individuals with greater social contact.

Fifteen regions have been designated as hotspots on Wednesday while 15 regions were excluded from the list. There are currently 660 hotspots in the state.