Swineflu: 40 deaths in Maharashtra

A total of 40 persons have died of swine flu in Maharashtra with 239 cases being reported across the state, state Health Minister Deepak Sawant said here today.
The number of swine flu cases registered in Mumbai stands at 54, out of which 4 persons have lost their lives whereas Nagpur tops the list at 14.
"As of January 1, there have been a total of 239 cases of swine flu reported throughout the state and 40 people have lost their lives. In Mumbai, there have been 54 cases reported as yet while 4 people have lost their lives due to the disease," Sawant told reporters here.

He said the state government has procured enough stock of Oseltamivir, commonly known as Tamiflu, and government hospitals across the state have been equipped with ventilators and N95 masks for H1N1 patients.
"The virus cannot survive in higher temparatures. But lately, there is a lot of fluctuation in temparature levels. This has aggravated the disease. But we currently have 8-10 lakh Tamiflu medicines and sufficient N95 masks in government hospitals," the minister said.
The highest number of deaths is reported from Nagpur 14, followed by Pune (8), Ahmednagar, Latur, and Aurangabad districts (2 each), and Navi Mumbai, Gondia, Jalna, and Satara districts (1 each).