CORONAVIRUS HITS CARIBBEAN

Although regional media reported four cases of the covid19 in the Caribbean, it must be confirmed by the Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO) and the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) said Ministry of Health chief medical officer Dr Roshan Parasram, on Sunday.

Cases have been identified in the island of Saint-Barthélemy (St Barts), French St Martin and in the Dominican Republic.

It was reported in the Daily Herald of St Martin that three people were confirmed positive for the virus by the Institute Pasteur Laboratory of Guadeloupe.

The resident of Saint-Barthélemy is currently confined to his home with daily surveillance. The parents have been placed in solitary confinement at the St Martin hospital and are being closely followed. Officials said their state of health was not worrying.

Samples from people who they have been in contact with are being analysed. Two other possible cases have been identified in a couple from French St Martin who recently returned from vacation in Oise.

NBC News in the US has also reported that health officials in the Dominican Republic on Sunday confirmed its first case of covid19 in a 62-year-old Italian citizen.

In an interview with Newsday, Parasram said he believed everyone was concerned generally about the virus worldwide because it had been spreading rapidly to new countries each day.

Parasram said reports of covid19 cases in such territories were of great concern because travel between TT and those Caribbean countries were frequent.

“We are doing screening at all the ports of entry. Our screening is done at all airlines at this point in Piarco and it is not limited to one area at this point.

“We were doing screening of all passengers, there is no need to scale up on the airport side at all. However, we will be looking closely at the situation as it unfolds in those islands to see what is happening."

Asked about possible changes to travel within the region, Parasram explained that the cases identified in the Caribbean so far might have been imported and were not a single event.

He said PAHO and CARPHA had not provided the relevant information to determine the circumstances surrounding those cases.

“Imported cases means that the virus came from one of the other countries (that already have the infection). The person would have travelled recently from the other countries, therefore, there was no local spread and it depends on how quickly we act in terms of containment.

“If they contain it well and there are no further cases then their country will be no greater risk to us at this point. It all depends on what happens over the next few days."

Parasram explained that if covid19 were to become widespread in a Caribbean country, the TT Government would have to look at possible changes to travel restrictions.

He said plans and measures to deal with the latest news would unfold once information is provided over the next 24 to 48 hours.

This country first instituted a 14-day ban on visitors coming from China. Five other countries have since been added to that list: South Korea, Italy, Japan, Iran and Singapore.

Asked if Saint-Barthélemy, French St Martin and the Dominican Republic would be added to the list, Parasram said the decision would have to be taken by the Minister of Health in collaboration with the Minister of National Security and the Prime Minister.

“We will be guided based on what is happening from the PAHO situation and analysis as well as the CARPHA report. We only got these releases of the situation within the last three hours today (Sunday).

“They (PAHO and CARPHA) will have to go to the countries themselves to find out if it was an imported case or a single event, then they will guide us all in the Caribbean in a way going forward on how to proceed,” Parasram said.

He said a meeting would be held soon to determine what could be done or had to be done.

When contacted, Health Minister Terrance Deyalsingh said he was unavailable to comment because he was at a meeting in Barbados.

Several calls made to the Minister of National Security Stuart Young and Dr Rowley, went unanswered.

More than 85,000 people in more than 50 countries have been infected with covid19. As of Sunday afternoon, about 3,000 people were reported to have been killed by the virus worldwide.