Indian nurse diagnosed for coronavirus doesn’t have Wuhan strain: Consulate

The coronavirus strain that emerged in the Chinese city of Wuhan in Hubei province has so far infected over 830 people.

An Indian nurse working in Saudi Arabia has tested positive for coronavirus, but with a different strain from the one that has claimed 18 lives in China, the Indian Consulate in Jeddah said on Thursday.

Minister of State for Foreign Affairs V Muraleedharan, before that statement, had said an Indian nurse working at Al-Hayat hospital in Saudi Arabia was tested positive for coronavirus. “Update from @CGIJeddah: About 100 Indian nurses mostly from Kerala working at Al-Hayat hospital have been tested and none except one nurse was found infected by Corona virus. Affected nurse is being treated at Aseer National Hospital and is recovering well,” he said on Twitter.

Muraleedharan said he spoke to the Indian Consulate in Jeddah after the Indian nurses were quarantined at the hospital due to the coronavirus threat. Responding to his tweet, the Indian Consulate in Jeddah clarified that the nurse found positive for coronavirus was suffering for MERS-CoV and not 2019-NCoV (Wuhan). “Dr Tarik Al Azraqi, Chairman, Scientific Regional Infection Control Committee, Aseer Region, has confirmed that d Indian Nurse being treated at Aseer National Hospital is suffering from MERS-CoV & not 2019-NCoV (Wuhan). We request everyone to refrain from sharing incorrect info,” it said in the tweet.