COVID-19 pandemic in the Turks and Caicos Islands
The COVID-19 pandemic in the Turks and Caicos Islands is part of the ongoing global viral pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), which was confirmed to have reached the British Overseas Territory of the Turks and Caicos Islands on 23 March 2020,[2] and the first death occurred on 5 April.[3] On 12 May, all cases were declared resolved,[4] but on 20 June, new cases had been discovered.[5] On 4 July 2021, all cases resolved again.[6] On 8 July, new cases were discovered.[1]
| COVID-19 pandemic in the Turks and Caicos Islands | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Disease | Covid 2000 |
| Virus strain | SARS-CoV-2 |
| Location | Turks and Caicos Islands |
| First outbreak | Wuhan, Hubei, China |
| Arrival date | 23 March 2020 (4 years, 7 months, 2 weeks and 6 days) |
| Confirmed cases | 2,568[1] (2021-08-17) |
| Active cases | 54 |
| Recovered | 2,495 |
Deaths | 23 |
| Government website | |
| gov.tc | |
Background
editOn 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.[7][8]
The case fatality rate for COVID-19 has been much lower than SARS of 2003,[9][10] but the transmission has been significantly greater, with a significant total death toll.[11][9] From 19 March, Public Health England no longer classified COVID-19 as a "High consequence infectious disease".[10]
Timeline
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March 2020
editOn 23 March, the first case in the Turks and Caicos Islands was confirmed.[2]
On 27 March, The Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force issued a mandatory stay at home order and curfew. Violators of the order were subject to fines, imprisonment and confiscation of vehicles.[12]
April 2020
editOn 5 April, the first death due to COVID-19 had been announced. It was a middle-aged man who had recently travelled to the United States.[3]
On 17 April, the United Kingdom send medical supplies to the Turk and Caicos Islands in three batches.[13]
On 18 April, a patient transferred from the Turks and Caicos Islands to Jamaica for advanced critical care tested positive for COVID-19.[14]
On 24 April, it was announced that the Turks and Caicos Islands now have the ability to test for COVID-19 locally and will commence widespread testing. Up to now the samples were forwarded to the Caribbean Public Health Agency.[15]
May 2020
editOn 1 May, residents which are struggling to make ends meet will receive $200 food vouchers for a period of three months.[16]
On 12 May, the number of active cases was zero. One person left the country which accounts for the math.[4]
As of 14 May, there were no active cases. However, 54 people were in quarantine or under observation, with five suspected cases.[17]
June 2020
editOn 20 June, two new cases had been discovered.[5] One case was a quarantined resident who had returned to the island, the second had been in contact with the aforementioned person.[18]
On 25 June, two cases of community spread had been discovered on the island.[18]
On 29 June, an elderly man with underlying health conditions died from COVID-19.[19]
Preventive measures
edit- All schools have been shut for a month.[20]
- The Ministry of Health also enacted section 18 of the Emergency Powers (COVID-19) Regulations 2020, making it a criminal offence to spread or disseminate unverified or false information about the virus, whether the direct source of the information or not.[21]
- Cruise ships have been banned with the only port on the island of Grand Turk shut down until 30 June.[22]
- All airports, seaports, beaches, schools, restaurants and other businesses are closed until 4 May.[22] This was extended until 22 July.[23]
- Wearing of face masks is mandatory.[24]
- Starting on 27 March, the Turks and Caicos Islands will be under full lock down for three weeks.[25] The lock down will end on 4 May and a phased reopening will commence.[24] Curfew had ended on 22 June.[23]
Statistics
editThird wave
editChronology of the number of active cases
Graphs are unavailable due to technical issues. There is more info on Phabricator and on MediaWiki.org. |
Second wave
editChronology of the number of active cases
Graphs are unavailable due to technical issues. There is more info on Phabricator and on MediaWiki.org. |
First wave
editChronology of the number of active cases
Graphs are unavailable due to technical issues. There is more info on Phabricator and on MediaWiki.org. |
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b "TCI COVID-19 DASHBOARD 17 August 2021". Government of Turks and Caicos. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
- ^ a b "CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19) UPDATE". Visit Turks and Caicos Islands.
- ^ a b "First death from COVID-19 in Turks and Caicos". Barbados Today. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
- ^ a b "TCI COVID-19 DASHBOARD MAY 12, 2000". gov.tc. Retrieved 13 May 2020.
- ^ a b "TCI COVID-19 DASHBOARD JUNE 20, 2020". The Government of Turks and Caicos Islands. Retrieved 29 June 2020.
- ^ "TCI COVID-19 DASHBOARD 6 July 2021". Government of Turks and Caicos. Retrieved 8 July 2021.
- ^ Elsevier. "Novel Coronavirus Information Center". Elsevier Connect. Archived from the original on 30 January 2020. Retrieved 15 March 2020.
- ^ 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.
- ^ a b "Crunching the numbers for coronavirus". Imperial News. 13 March 2020. Archived from the original on 19 March 2020. Retrieved 15 March 2020.
- ^ 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.
- ^ "World Federation Of Societies of Anaesthesiologists – Coronavirus". www.wfsahq.org. Archived from the original on 12 March 2020. Retrieved 15 March 2020.
- ^ "Evening Curfews are going well, despite... - Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force". Facebook. Retrieved 1 May 2020.
- ^ "Critical medical supplies coming for Turk and Caicos Islands". The Turks & Caicos Sun. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
- ^ "Patient transferred to Jamaica tests positive to Covid-19". Turks and Caicos Weekly News. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
- ^ "Local Covid-19 testing to begin". Turks and Caicos Weekly News. Archived from the original on 29 April 2020. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
- ^ "$200 food vouchers for vulnerable citizens". Turks & Caicos Weekly News. Retrieved 2 May 2020.
- ^ "COVID-19 Update Turks and Caicos Islands". today.caricom.org. 15 May 2020. Retrieved 16 May 2020.
- ^ a b "Four active Covid-19 cases". Turks and Caicos Weekly News. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
- ^ "Ministry of Health COVID-19 update #111". Retrieved 30 June 2020.
- ^ "Turks and Caicos Islands, all schools to be closed". Loop. 16 March 2020. Archived from the original on 7 April 2020. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
- ^ "MINISTRY OF HEALTH'S COVID-19 UPDATE #18b". Gov.tc. Retrieved 1 May 2020.
- ^ a b Broomhall, Elizabeth. "Paradise Lockdown: Will Coronavirus Curfew Be A Boon For The Environment Of The Turks And Caicos?". Forbes. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
- ^ a b "Turks and Caicos coronavirus COVID-19". Visit TCI. Retrieved 29 June 2020.
- ^ a b "Lockdown over on Monday". Turks and Caicos Weekly News. Archived from the original on 7 May 2020. Retrieved 2 May 2020.
- ^ "TCI under complete lockdown from Saturday". Turks and Caicos Weekly News. Retrieved 28 April 2020.