Investigation underway to determine source
CHARLESTOWN, Nevis - ONE day after Premier Mark Brantley had urged citizens and residens of Nevis to ensure they take advantage of the last day of vaccination in this round, the island confirmed its 16th COVID-19 case.
The Ministry of Health in a statement announced that the island recorded the case on Tuesday (June 29), noting that the individual has no history of travel, prompting a deep contact tracing to determine the source of infection.
Unlike St. Kitts, 15 of the 16 cases on the island would have recovered from the virus.
The discovery is raising alarms on the island as there is limited tracking between the two islands due to the spike in cases on the large of the two locations.
In its statement, citizens, residents and visitors are urged to continue to adhere to the non-pharmaceutical prevention and control protocols of properly wearing a mask covering their nose and mouth at all times when in public spaces.
Those measures include the washing and/or sanitising of hands frequently throughout the day; keeping a distance of six feet or more between oneself and other persons; staying away from crowds; keeping hands out of one’s face, nose, mouth and eyes; sanitising frequently touched surfaces throughout the day; and sanitising one’s hands after sanitising surfaces in order to minimise the virus spread.
The discovery of case 16 could prompt stricter measures by the Nevis Island Administration to combat the virus, similar to those currently in place on the island of St. Kitts.
Due to the limited number of active cases on the island, separate measures were implemented to ensure business activities continue as officials monitor the situation.
However, threats were made that any additional confirmed cases could prompt further lockdowns.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Health is urging persons who may have been exposed to someone with COVID-19 or experiencing symptoms suggestive of COVID-19 infection to immediately self-quarantine and call 311, 661-5051, 665-5473, the nearest health centre or their healthcare provider.
The Federation currently has the Lambda strain of the virus and it produces symptoms such as nausea, abdominal pain, vomiting, diarrhoea, severe headache, body aches, dizziness, fever, cough, shortness of breath and difficulty breathing.
