Group’s return from Ibiza holiday lead to 13 new cases

MORE than 13 people were infected after one group of holidaymakers returned home to Wales from a Spanish island with the virus.

The recent case was highlighted by Wales’ Health Minister Vaughan Gething during the weekly coronavirus briefing as an example of how quickly the virus can be spread.

Over recent days, more than 100 cases have been confirmed in Wales, the highest levels since June, and returning holidaymakers have been partly blamed.

Last week, two plane loads of passengers on planes coming back to Cardiff from Greece were told to self-isolate after a number of positive cases were detected.

It lead to the Welsh Government announcing that visitors to six Greek islands, mainland Portugal, Gibraltar and French Polynesia would be included in the list of countries, that includes Spain and France, where people have to quarantine when they return home.

Using an example of a group of friends who returned from a short holiday in Ibiza in August, Mr Gething showed how the virus spread to more than a dozen: three of them came home with coronavirus; after returning home one of the group passed the virus on to their partner and his father; another person in the group had a party the day after coming home and four people caught coronavirus; one of these then passed the virus on to their brother, who then passed it to a friend by sharing a car; another party guest passed it on to their sister, who in turn infected a friend on a night out.

Within just a few days of the friends’ return home, 13 people had coronavirus.

Mr Gething added: “If we are to continue to control the spread of coronavirus and keep transmission low, we need everyone’s help.

“It’s really important that everyone follows the measures to keep them and their families safe – they keep their distance, wash their hands often and if they develop symptoms, they stay at home and get a test.”

The rise in cases which has led to the local lockdown in Caerphilly and clusters in Rhondda Cynon Taf are being partly linked to holiday travel abroad.