COVID-19 pandemic in the British Indian Ocean Territory

The COVID-19 pandemic in the British Indian Ocean Territory is part of the ongoing worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The virus was confirmed to have reached Diego Garcia of the British Indian Ocean Territory in November 2020.[1][2]

COVID-19 pandemic in the British Indian Ocean Territory
DiseaseCOVID-19
Virus strainSARS-CoV-2
LocationBritish Indian Ocean Territory
First outbreakWuhan, Hubei, China
Arrival dateNovember 2020
Confirmed cases5[1][2]
Suspected cases0
Recovered2
Deaths
0
Suspected cases have not been confirmed by laboratory tests as being due to this strain, although some other strains may have been ruled out.

Background

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On 12 January 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) confirmed that a novel coronavirus was the cause of a respiratory illness in a cluster of people in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China, which was reported to the WHO on 31 December 2019.[3][4]

The case fatality ratio for COVID-19 has been much lower than SARS of 2003,[5][6] but the transmission has been significantly greater, with a significant total death toll.[7][5] From 19 March 2020, Public Health England no longer classified COVID-19 as a "High consequence infectious disease".[6]

Timeline

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November 2020

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In November 2020, the first case of COVID-19 was confirmed at Diego Garcia.[1]

December 2020

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In December 2020, the second case, a close contact of the first case, was confirmed.[1]

May 2021

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In May 2021, three more cases were confirmed from a flight. The personnel arrived at the island in April.[2]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d "In the Studio with Capt. Blizzard". www.facebook.com. AFN Diego Garcia. 1 January 2021. Retrieved 19 May 2021.
  2. ^ a b c "In the Studio with Capt. Blizzard". www.facebook.com. AFN Diego Garcia. 7 May 2021. Retrieved 19 May 2021.
  3. ^ Elsevier. "Novel Coronavirus Information Center". Elsevier Connect. Archived from the original on 30 January 2020. Retrieved 15 March 2020.
  4. ^ Reynolds, Matt (4 March 2020). "What is coronavirus and how close is it to becoming a pandemic?". Wired UK. ISSN 1357-0978. Archived from the original on 5 March 2020. Retrieved 5 March 2020.
  5. ^ a b "Crunching the numbers for coronavirus". Imperial News. 13 March 2020. Archived from the original on 19 March 2020. Retrieved 15 March 2020.
  6. ^ a b "High consequence infectious diseases (HCID); Guidance and information about high consequence infectious diseases and their management in England". GOV.UK. Archived from the original on 3 March 2020. Retrieved 17 March 2020.
  7. ^ "World Federation Of Societies of Anaesthesiologists – Coronavirus". www.wfsahq.org. Archived from the original on 12 March 2020. Retrieved 15 March 2020.