Minister of Health and Wellness Lt Col Jeffrey Bostic Sunday announced the reintroduction of a national curfew, prohibited social gatherings including fetes, delayed summer camps and outlined the limit on the number of people allowed to attend indoor events among a series of measures over the next two weeks to contain a spike in COVID-19 cases.
On Saturday, the island recorded 40 new positive cases of the viral illness, which authorities have described as “worrying.”
Health officials have taken immediate steps to ramp up contact tracing and this will be buttressed by aggressive community testing.
Bostic told a national press conference at Ilaro Court: “There will be very aggressive contact tracing and that has started from early this morning and the ministry intends to make available all human and technical resources to those persons who are responsible for conducting this exercise on the ground on behalf of the ministry.
“The other part of the exercise has to do with aggressive community testing; because of the number of persons who are presenting late at Accident and Emergency and doctors’ offices with symptoms. This suggests to us that we need to get back out into the community and appeal to persons who have symptoms or who are not feeling well to do what is required for testing.”
The health minister added it was also “absolutely necessary” to restrict movement in the interest of safety and security as he announced a ban on several activities to take effect from Tuesday, July 13.
“The curfew will be reintroduced every day from 11 p.m. to 5 a.m. from Tuesday, 13th July. There will be no social gatherings such as fetes for at least the next two weeks. Attendance at cinemas, churches and other indoor settings will be capped at 100 persons. In relation to funerals and weddings, based on spacing we are going to cap those at 100 as well and I know people may have been looking forward to summer camps but we are going to delay those for the next two weeks,” Bostic outlined.
Additionally, full-contact sports have been banned, there will be no spectators at sporting events and dance studios and clubs will not be allowed to operate during the period.
With respect to public transport, Minister Bostic made clear that operators must stick to 75 per cent capacity and this applies to seated passengers.
He also urged businesses to allow employees to work from home where possible as part of efforts to limit the movement of persons and to allow health personnel to conduct necessary contact tracing.
The health minister reiterated his concerns that COVID-19 protocols were not being followed and he pleaded with the public to adhere to the rules.
“What we are seeing is not good in terms of how people are treating to the protocols. I have repeated on many occasions that with vaccines or without vaccines, with people coming into the country or not coming into the country at the end of the day, it is up to each and every single one of us to follow the true and scientifically tested protocols, mask-wearing, physical distancing, sanitizing of hands, respiratory etiquette, these are the things that will save us. I really beseech you, please adhere to the protocols. If you do that, we can defeat this in as short a period as possible,” Bostic stressed. (SD)
