Travel ban extended to four more countries as new Coronavirus cases confirmed
Four more countries have been added to a travel ban as Malta registered two more cases of Coronavirus.
Prime Minister Robert Abela announced yesterday that travel to Germany, France, Spain and Switzerland has also been suspended. On Tuesday, the PM had announced a ban on all flights and sea voyages to Italy, except for cargo runs.
Abela said the decision was taken after an “exponential” rise in the number of cases in these countries.
The PM said that decisions are being taken almost every hour, and it could be that other important ones will be taken in the next few hours.
He announced that quarantine is now mandatory for anyone who arrived from Germany, France, Spain and Switzerland yesterday, while the mandatory quarantine is extended to people who arrived from Italy over the last days. Those who returned from Italy a week ago, for example, will need to complete another week of mandatory quarantine.
Those who do not follow these instructions will be subject to €1,000 fine. Spot checks by the police force will take place in order to ensure that infected people abide by these regulations.
People will be able to carry out the mandatory quarantine in their own homes, and if
there are more people in the household, they will also need to quarantine themselves. The fine is for each and every time someone in quarantine breaks the requirement, Abela said. He added that the government will not tolerate anyone who will not carry their weight. “We will not accept responsibility for their actions and if we see that people are being irresponsible, we will increase penalties.”
Any tourists coming from the countries mentioned are obliged to quarantine themselves in the residence they have booked to stay in.
The Malta Independent pointed out that some people who are using the coronavirus helpline 111 are not being assisted or are simply being directed to the coronavirus webpage.
Deputy Prime Minister and Health Minister Chris Fearne, who also addressed the press conference, said that the helpline is managed by doctors and healthcare professionals. However, there has recently been a surplus of people who are making use of it. For this reason, they have introduced a system that filters through calls as not all cases might be as serious as others.
Fearne explained that the first tier will consist of people answering the calls who are not doctors themselves. These individuals will answer any non-urgent cases while referring any serious cases to the doctors manning the helpline – “this will ensure that we can answer more people simultaneously.”
Abela and Fearne were asked why they opted to make quarantine mandatory now, given that the Medical Association of Malta had already appealed for this measure last week. They insisted that “as a country we are being very proactive, almost too proactive, and decisions are being made following consultation with health authorities.”
He explained that these measures are always bound to change if that is what the health authorities see fit. “Our approach has always been one that moves gradually, but we have always been proactive as we have always followed the recommendations made from the Superintendent of Public Health.”
The media also made reference to the death threats that the 16-year-old in quarantine has received after false accusations were made that she broke quarantine. Abela said that the government does not tolerate such behaviour and if need be, they will open an inquiry about it.
He said that he understands that people might be concerned about people not abiding by quarantine measures and he has emphasised that this is not a time to take lightly “even though we should handle it in a calm manner. However, threats will not be tolerated.”
It was pointed out that people are stealing hand sanitizers from Mater Dei Hospital. Fearne said that a number of public areas have been equipped with sanitizers so in his opinion if someone took one and used it appropriately, it is not that much of a problem. His concern is that people are taking more than one just to keep at home and appealed for everyone to help each other out and not only think of themselves.
He concluded by appealing for people to maintain a sense of maturity and carry out their responsibility “as we have to work together to overcome this detriment in the shortest time possible.” “This might not be the most comfortable time to be living in, but this is what is required for us to protect the most precious thing we have, our health.”
6th and 7th cases
The health authorities yesterday said a Maltese doctor had tested positive for Coronavirus. The Mater Dei Hospital doctor was on holiday in the northern part of Italy in the past days.
Like all other cases, this coronavirus case was “imported” from Italy. The man is in good condition, the government said.
In a press briefing, Charmaine Gauci, health superintendent, said the man is 55 years old. He travelled to Treviso on 1 March and returned on 8 March. A day later, he started to feel unwell and on 10 March he developed a fever. He contacted the health authorities and, after tests were carried out, he resulted positive for coronavirus. Since his return from Italy, he was in self-quarantine and did not go to work, obeying instructions given by the health authorities, Gauci said.
Gauci emphasised that the man had not reported for work upon arrival in Malta, and that since he had shown symptoms only a day after arriving in Malta, it was certain that he had contracted the virus from Italy. Therefore, she stressed, there remains no risk of transmission at Mater Dei Hospital.
She added that the man stayed away from other members of the family. Nonetheless, she said that the man’s family – a family of five including the man – are in mandatory quarantine as they are considered to be at high-risk of contracting the disease because of close contact with a symptomatic person.
Gauci said that the man’s son, who also travelled to Italy, also self-quarantined and did not go to school. He has developed no symptoms.
The authorities later confirmed that a relative of the doctor had also tested positive. The woman, who had also travelled to Italy, is in good condition and is being monitored at the Infectious Diseases Unit. The woman did not report for work after returning from abroad.
Asked by this newsroom whether any measures were being taken to ensure that public transportation is cleaned and disinfected on a regular basis, Gauci replied in the positive, stating that they are communicating with other entities, and that public transportation entities have already implemented measures for more ventilation on their vehicles.
She said that this subject ties in with the concept of responsibility insofar as that people who are sick should not go out of the house. She also appealed for people to wash their hands more frequently and use sanitisers such as alcohol, gels or wipes when touching somewhere where there may have been the microbes, as it is important as a preventive measure.
Gauci reminded people of the measures imposed on social gatherings, noting the restrictions now placed on crowds – these being of not exceeding 2,000 people outdoor and 750 people indoor.
She said that those who are swabbed at the new centre in Luqa are instructed to stay at home until results emerge, and also noted that those Maltese who are arriving from Rome between yesterday and today have been instructed to selfquarantine as well.