The tiny Pacific nation of Marshall Islands has remained relatively unaffected by COVID-19 for more than two years since the disease spread across the world. However, more than a tenth population of the capital Majuro has been infected in the last week
Representational image of Marshall Islands. AFP
The tiny nation of Marshall Islands is the latest victim of the COVID-19 pandemic as the administration has declared a health disaster after recording a positivity rate of 75 per cent over the last one week.The island nation has remained relatively unaffected by COVID-19 in more than two years since the disease spread across the world.
According to the BBC, since October 2020, two deaths have been reported across the Marshall Islands, and a cumulative total of 3,036 cases have been logged.
However, in the last one week, COVID-19 variant omicron has infected more than a tenth of residents in the capital Majuro.
“We’re gearing up for the hardest part of the outbreak right now in Majuro,” Health Secretary Jack Niedenthal said Monday.
A relaxing of the quarantine rules in recent weeks coupled with unprecedented numbers of people coming in through the managed quarantine process is the outbreak’s suspected cause.
COVID outbreak in Marshall IslandsSince a handful of positive community cases were confirmed on 8 August, the numbers have skyrocketed to 2,800 in a city of 22,500.
Thanks to strict quarantine rules, the Marshall Islands was one of the last countries to stay COVID-19-free.
“The good thing about having all these other countries go before us is we really understand epidemiologically how this variant of the virus spreads: like wildfire,” Niedenthal added.
On Friday, the Marshalls’ President David Kabua signed a “State of Health Disaster” to give the government access to emergency funding.
So far, there have been 3,000 positive cases in a population of around 42,000 across the islands and atolls that comprise the Marshalls.
Niedenthal warned the outbreak was continuing “to gain strength” in Majuro, as the number of cases doubled from Saturday to Sunday.
“About 75 per cent of the people we test are positive, which is an incredibly high rate,” he addedSo far, three deaths have been reported.
Local health officials initially struggled to cope with demand as thousands of islanders clamored for help even as 200 doctors and nurses across the country tested positive for COVID-19.
The outbreak has since spread from the capital to Ebeye, the densely populated community next door to the U.S. military’s Reagan Test Site at Kwajalein Atoll.
The tiny island, home to about 1,000 people, would likely see a surge in cases, Niedenthal warned Monday. “They are about a week behind Majuro,” he said.
What steps have been taken to control the spread?
Domestic flights by national carrier Air Marshall Islands and travel by government ships to remote islands have been suspended since last Tuesday in an effort to contain the spread.
The government previously announced plans to open its borders and drop quarantine on arrival requirements from 1 October.
The U.S.-based Centers for Disease Control and other agencies are set to send support teams this week.
Niedenthal described the extra help as “boots-on-the-ground medical support professionals” who will be sent to support local authorities after being tested on arrival.
“As a country, we have moved from prevention to mitigation because we are now fighting this disease,” he said.
“The days of quarantine upon arrival are now over.”With inputs from agencies
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