All 289 passengers deplaned after coronavirus patient boards Dubai-bound flight in Kochi

All 289 passengers aboard an Emirates flight from Kerala's Kochi to Dubai were offloaded at the Kochi airport after one of the passengers tested positive for coronavirus. The man, a native of United Kingdom, was placed in quarantine at a resort in Kerala but he dodged the authorities and managed to reach the airport with a group of 19 people.

It is learnt that the man was vacationing in Munnar and the group was staying at a resort in Munnar from March 7.

In a message to the media, Cochin International Airport (CIAL) said: “It is decided to offload the remaining 270 passengers and send them to the hospital for further investigation. He was in surveillance in Munnar and came to the airport without informing authorities. By the [time the] result came, and the authorities came to know about it, he was there at the airport. Now entire group was offloaded (sic).”

Notably, 22 positive cases of coronavirus have been reported in Kerala so far and a total of 302 people are undergoing treatment in isolation wards in hospitals across the state.

“A total of 7,677 people are under observation in the state, out of which 7,375 people are under home quarantine and 302 are in isolation wards across the state. Out of the total of 1,897 samples sent for testing, 1,345 tested negative," Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said.