SHILLONG, May 28: A couple who had tested positive for COVID-19 fled from quarantine while another high-risk contact jumped out of a 108 ambulance to escape testing on Wednesday, a delayed report said on Friday.
Confirming the incidents, East Shillong MLA, Ampareen Lyngdoh said that all three hailed from Laitumkhrah.
Providing details, Ampareen said the husband was quarantined at MATI, Mawdiangdiang while his wife was admitted at Shillong Civil Hospital. In an apparently planned move, both of them fled on the evening of May 26 and landed up in several locations in a bid to hide themselves from the authorities.
When some alert citizens informed the Dorbar Shnong, the couple turned violent and refused to listen to anyone. They finally relented after the Dorbar managed space for both of them at the MATI corona care centre, the MLA said.
In contrast, the man who had jumped out of an ambulance agreed to go for the test after he was spotted.
Reacting to the incidents, Deputy Chief Minister Prestone Tynsong said that COVID-19 patients often suffer from depression as they have to isolate for ten days. “But they are putting others at risk by violating the isolation protocol,” he said.
Tynsong asserted that the government would look after the mental wellbeing of COVID-19 patients who are suffering from depression.
