BADIN: A 60-year-old villager who was referred to a Karachi hospital by doctors at the Indus (civil) Hospital here on Friday night died on the way near Pangrio town.

MNA Barrister Hasnain Mirza apprehended that he might be a suspected coronavirus patient, and expressed his serious concern over what could be the first death in Badin from the virus.

Some residents of Pangrio said the man had been suffering from some respiratory disorder for some days and was taken to the Indus Hospital for treatment. After examining the patient, who was gasping for air, doctors on duty referred him to the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre in Karachi so that he could be put on ventilator but he died on the way.

His relatives were not allowed to bring his body back to their village and, as such, the body was buried somewhere in Karachi on Saturday. Some government functionaries visited the village to advise the family and residents of the neighbourhood to confine themselves to their houses and observe isolation.

Barrister Mirza in his statement wondered why the man was not put on ventilator though the Indus Hospital did have 11 such machines.

Published in Dawn, April 5th, 2020