Fijis national airline has cancelled all its international and domestic flights until May after the Government put parts of the country into lockdown in response to an unlinked Covid-19 case in the community.
A case in Makoi, Suva, reported on Sunday has no known links to earlier cases and is being treated as a possible community transmission case. The infected woman and her husband have been placed in quarantine while authorities try to pin down their movements and identify all their contacts.
We are not certain of the source of her infection, but the Ministry of Health is busy doing contact tracing to determine who she may have been in contact with before or after she was infected, Permanent Secretary for Health and Medical Services Dr James Fong said at a press conference on Sunday.
We are forced to take strict precautionary measures against the possibility that the virus has spread within the Lami-Suva Nausori areas and within the Nadi-Lautoka area.
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Our purpose is to keep people from circulating unnecessarily. If people dont move, the virus wont move.
As of 4am Monday (local time), for the next two weeks, Lami to Suva Nausori areas have been placed into lockdown. People arent allowed to move in or out of the containment zones, Fong confirmed.
On Monday, Fiji Airways, Air New Zealand and Fiji Link announced all international repatriation flights in and out of Fiji had been cancelled until May 2.
All domestic flights have also been cancelled.
Fiji Airways has cancelled its flights in and out of the country due to the lockdown.
International freight services will continue to ensure vital export and import supply chains for Fiji remain,
The cancellations are beyond the control of both airlines, and are in place in the interest of safety of customers, staff and the general public,” a statement on Fiji Airways website said.
Fiji Airways will reassess flights after May 2 in line with the Government updates.
Air New Zealand’s next flight to Nadi was scheduled for Thursday, but a spokeswoman for the airline said it had been advised by the Fijian government to cancel it.
The service this week will operate as cargo only, and we are contacting impacted customers directly, she said.
Cases and lockdown
Four other cases have been linked to a funeral held in Tavakubu on April 16 and April 17, which has been labelled a super-spreader event. The cases include a 14-year-old who attended with her mother who previously tested positive, a couple in Nadi, and an individual in Lautoka. These cases have stemmed from a soldier stationed at a managed isolation and quarantine facility.
For the current lockdown in Lami and Suva Nausori, exits have been closed and checkpoints erected from Wainadoi to Tamavau-I-Wai, Tamavua-I-Wai to 8 Miles Bridge, and 8 Miles Bridge to Logani Village on Kings Road.
The Nadi to Lautoka region will also be divided into two zones from Momi Junction to Lomolomo Police Post and from Lomolomo Police Post to Nacilauand free movement between the two regions is no longer allowed. Only those travelling for medical reasons are allowed through the checkpoints.
Non-essential businesses must remain closed. Supermarkets, pharmacies and stores selling essential items are allowed to remain open. Restaurants are allowed to operate with take-away and delivery options only.
The point is, food and essential goods will remain on the shelves of our shops, markets, and supermarkets. Do not run to the supermarkets and bulk buy goods this afternoon doing so will crowd these stores and put every shopper at risk, Fong warned on Sunday.
Fiji is responding to a new outbreak of Covid-19 in the community.
People are being advised to remain in their containment zones and limit interactions to those within households.
If youre missing a friend or loved one, do the safe thing and call them on the phone. If you need to walk around or exercise you may do so, but wear masks and maintain social distance when you must be out.
These measures are precautionary and have been introduced to prevent the spread of the virus throughout the country, Fong said.
We have done great work together to keep Fiji safe so far, and we have seen how opportunistic this virus is. One small, innocent lapse or a careless attitude to our health measures by one person can start a chain of infection that can spread rapidly and sicken thousands.
Fong reminded people to report any symptoms as soon as they develop, stop shaking hands, touching and embracing, and wash hands multiple times a day.
We must take every day one at a time, not as a reason for despair but as an opportunity for containment. Our greatest hope is in the hands of every Fijian; please for the fate of our country and those we love, do what weve directed you to do. Dont let this opportunity go to waste.
