Bangladesh confirms five new coronavirus cases as infections climb to 61

Bangladesh has detected five new cases of the novel coronavirus, taking the tally of positive tests to 61.

But the death toll from the virus outbreak remains unchanged at six, Health Minister Zahid Malik said on Friday.

A total of 26 patients have recovered from the virus and returned home, he added.

The health minister said: “I request everyone -- please stay at home and maintain social distancing.”

After the minister’s speech, Abul Kalam Azad, director general of the Directorate General of Health Services, shared the details on the cases of infections.

Responding to a query, Azad said a woman from Narayanganj was among the six dead.

Test results of the virus infections came in from 43 districts. In the last 24 hours, 513 samples were tested. Of them, 126 samples were tested by IEDCR and the rest were done by other labs in Dhaka and districts.

“We are taking all the precautions. We’re tracing their contacts and isolating them,” he said.

Of the infected, 29 people are under observation, 22 of them in hospitals and the rest are being treated at home, said Azad.

Global coronavirus cases topped 1 million on Thursday as the pandemic explodes in the United States and the death toll continues to climb in Italy and Spain, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.

The virus has killed over 51,000 globally with the largest number of deaths in Italy, followed by Spain and the United States.

The first 100,000 cases were reported in around 55 days and the first 500,000 in 76 days. Cases doubled to 1 million within the past eight days.