Belize Confirms First Case Of COVID-19
Two other Caribbean countries bare own cases
The novel coronavirus has reached the shores of Belize, the Commonwealth of Dominica, and Grenada.
According to a report, Belize Prime Minister Dean Barrow confirmed in a press conference that the country’s first COVID-19 patient was a Belizean national.
She returned home from Los Angeles, California and felt unwell a couple of days after arriving.
Furthermore, the country is now doing an extensive contact tracing to prevent the spread of the virus.
Dominica, Grenada also record first COVID-19 cases
Grenada is also conducting its own thorough contact tracing after a 50-year-old woman who came back from the United Kingdom tested positive with COVID-19, according to reports.
Meanwhile, the patient in Dominica who got infected with the coronavirus is a 54-year-old male returnee also from the UK. According to The Chronicle, he is now in quarantine and under close medical supervision.
Consequently, Dominican Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit declared suspension of all classes beginning, Monday, 23rd of March, and issued a more tightened border screening.
Still coronavirus-free
The Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis is still free from COVID-19, so far. Last week, its government denied stories circulating in Caribbean media and social media about the alleged confirmed cases in the twin islands.
The Turks and Caicos Island also reported to have no confirmed cases yet, but five new suspected cases have been sent for testing.
Here is the latest tally of all the confirmed cases of COVID-19 per country—including all deaths and recoveries—based on Johns Hopkins University & Medicine’s online database:
- 1 – Antigua and Barbuda
- 1 – Dominica
- 1 – Grenada
- 1 – Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
- 2 – Saint Lucia
- 4 – Bahamas
- 5 – Haiti
- 5 – Suriname
- 17 – Barbados
- 19 – Guyana
- 19 – Jamaica
- 35 – Cuba
- 50 – Trinidad and Tobago
- 245 – Dominican Republic
Jamaica provides support to its tourist workers
Meanwhile, Jamaican Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett said that he has been in dialogue with the minister of finance to work out a financial package for the affected tourism workers affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“All our stakeholders are also working together to develop and coordinate strategies for limiting the risks associated with this pandemic,” said Bartlett in a letter obtained by the Jamaica Observer.
The tourism industry worldwide has received the hardest hit from the pandemic. Most of the businesses have ceased operations to properly implement social distancing.
Just recently, a Caribbean hotel chain announced its temporary closure due to COVID-19.