Male: Over 500 people have tested positive for COVID-19 in the Maldives so far, with the total number of recovered patients touching 18.

The Health Protection Agency (HPA) said 519 people have tested positive for the virus in the Maldives so far. This includes 343 foreigners and 176 locals.

The country recorded its first death due to the virus last week. The 83-year-old woman from the capital Male died on April 30.

According to HPA, the patient suffered from breathing difficulties and died while being transferred to the state-run Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital (IGMH).

The first case of local transmission in a residential island was identified on April 15 in capital Male. Since then, the number of infections has been rising rapidly in this Indian Ocean archipelago state that is currently under a State of Public Health Emergency.