BASSETERRE, St. Kitts - AS health officials continue to grapple with community spread of the Coronavirus on St. Kitts, quarantine facilities for law enforcement personnel are now coming under the microscope.
This comes as reports surfaced that the St. Kitts-Nevis Coast Guard currently does not have a proper facility to house any of it members who might have been in contact with someone who was infected by the virus or had shown symptoms of it.
SKNVibes understands that the Coast Guard facility located in the Basseterre area is the latest to come under scrutiny.
Sources familiar with the facility confirmed to this media house that a location currently being used to house four members is not best suited for such.
According to reports out of the location, two or three members are said to be quarantined in a single room with incomplete roofing. Reports also alleged that some persons who visited the site had to “bob and weave” as there are numerous hanging fixtures within the area where the four officers are housed.
In an invited comment to address the situation, Commander of the St. Kitts-Nevis Defence Force, Lieutenant Colonel Lt. Col.) Anthony Comrie confirmed that four members of the Coast Guard are indeed currently in quarantine at a facility in Basseterre.
He however explained that the location is currently under construction and is part of a barrack they are completing.
The Lt. Col. acknowledged that the law enforcement agency does not have a hotel or five-star facility like the St. Kitts Marriott, where its members could be housed, but noted that it is a work in progress.
He also acknowledged to SKNVibes that they do not have a specific location at this time to house quarantined persons, so the current location is being used as a temporary fix at this time.
According to Comrie, the four persons are expected to be released within the coming days as they would have completed their 14-day quarantine.
The ranks, SKNVibes understands, came into contact with one of the persons who was deemed a positive case of the virus.
It now raises the question: “What checks and balances have or are being carried out by the National Task Force when it comes to those mandated in leading the nation in the fight against the COVID-19?”
