| Basseterre, St. Kitts, February 04, 2021 (SKNIS): Superintendent of Police, Cromwell Henry advised the general public to adhere to all COVID-19 health and safety protocols and to stay on guard as each person is ultimately responsible for his or her safety and protection from the deadly virus. The call for strict adherence and a greater personal responsibility was made in light of what Superintendent Henry described as an “uncomfortable situation” that recently occurred with a person in quarantine. “This particular lapse of which I speak resulted in a positive COVID-19 case being discharged from quarantine into the community via public transportation. As a result of the incident, as soon as the incident came to our attention the COVID-19 Task Force activated its response mechanism immediately,” he said at Wednesday’s (February 03) edition of the National Emergency Operation Centre (NEOC) COVID-19 Briefing. “The positive case was identified and quickly placed in isolation.” He noted that the quick response by the relevant authorities also activated the country’s aggressive contact tracing mechanism by the COVID-19 National Task Force which resulted in 20 persons being placed in quarantine. “A vigorous contact tracing exercise ensued, and all identified contacts were immediately quarantined including the public service driver who was not observing the basic COVID-19 prevention protocols,” said Superintendent Henry. “Contact tracing, in this case, is still ongoing along with a police investigation to determine whether or not criminal charges will be filed.” The Superintendent said the protocols at the particular quarantine site were immediately reviewed and “remedial action” was taken “to prevent” a repeat of the incident. He added that the incident in question among others, “drives home the point that we ought to always observe the protocols and the provisions of the law which are intended to prevent the spread of the virus.” Superintendent Henry solicited the full cooperation of the general public and encouraged persons to always remember to wear their masks, maintain physical and social distancing, and sanitize frequently. -30- |
