In a statement to MAP, Dr. Ait Lahcen said that "the province of Essaouira reported 2 confirmed cases of infection with Covid-19", including one death following an acute respiratory complication, since the patient was aged over 70 and presented a cardiac comorbidity, while the second case was declared cured on April 5, after a favorable response to a 10-day treatment.

"The health authorities have detected 9 suspected cases which turned out to be negative after sending samples for testing at the Pasteur-Maroc Institute in Casablanca," he added.

Dr. Ait Lahcen noted that the medical teams ensured a twice-daily follow-up of 19 contacts of the confirmed cases 2 days before the appearance of clinical symptoms and 14 days afterwards.

"As of April 6, 2020, 4 contact cases are still under surveillance while quarantined," he said.

"Today, there are zero cases of Covid-19 infection at the Sidi Mohammed Ben Abdellah provincial hospital" in Essaouira, where an entire unit has been dedicated to receive patients with the virus, equipped with intensive care beds and others reserved for mild cases, he said.

He said that any possible cases will be closely cared for by medical, nursing and technical staff as well as ambulance personnel from the hospital and ambulatory facilities of the province, in addition to a team of executives from military medicine.

However, Dr. Ait Lahcen said that "the fact that the province of Essaouira does not present now any case of infection with Covid-19 does not in any way mean that we must not comply with the protection and prevention measures and lockdown directives."