(CNN) — The distant island nation of Kiribati went into lockdown for the primary time because the Covid-19 pandemic started two years in the past after dozens of passengers on a global flight examined optimistic for the virus.
In a press release posted to its official Facebook account on Tuesday, the Kiribati authorities confirmed that 36 out of 54 passengers on a flight that had come from Fiji on January 14 had all examined optimistic for the virus. Authorities had “taken all precautions” and have been “managing” the passengers from the time they entered into pre-departure quarantine in Fiji till their arrival and quarantine in Tarawa, the capital of Kiribati, the assertion mentioned.
Of a inhabitants of simply 122,391, solely 3 confirmed circumstances had been recognized in Kirbati earlier than final week’s flight. That’s partly as a result of island’s strict entry controls throughout the pandemic and its isolation. Kiribati sits in the course of the Pacific Ocean, 3,100 miles (5,000 kilometers) away from North America.
Kiribati’s authorities mentioned it should enact on Monday a 24-hour curfew in South Tarawa — the principle hub of Kiribati — and the close by township of Beito.
Residents should keep house except they’ve to depart for important work, entry emergency providers or store for meals or different important items, the federal government mentioned in its assertion.
No public transport might be in operation; social gatherings might be banned; and all bars and nightclubs might be closed.
Kiribati for the time being requires all individuals to put on masks in public areas, together with on public transportation. There is already a curfew in place from 10 p.m. till 5 a.m., and social gatherings are currntly restricted to 10 individuals.
Kiribati and different Pacific nations had been spared the worst of the pandemic as a result of many states closed their borders international nationals shortly after the virus emerged in late 2019.
The resolution to enter lockdown over a handful of circumstances will not be with out precedent within the South Pacific. Tonga declared a weeklong lockdown for the principle island Tongatapu after authorities there found the nation’s first Covid-19 case in November.