4 new COVID cases reported as bars/restaurants prepare to open

Four new cases of COVID-19 were reported Friday as Cayman’s bars and restaurants prepare to open their doors on Sunday for the first time since March.

“Sunday is indeed a significant milestone,” Governor Martyn Roper said of Cayman’s efforts to suppress the virus and slowly reopen its economy.

Chief Medical Officer Dr. John Lee confirmed some employees in the hospitality industry – specifically those who work in restaurants and bars – have started to be tested through the screening programme.

Starting on 7 June, restaurants and bars will be allowed to open with the following restrictions:

• Restaurants/bars are allowed to serve customers in open-air and patio areas until 9pm. No enclosed or A/C dining is allowed.
• Only table service will be available. Patrons will not be allowed at bars or counters.
• Tables are to be kept a minimum of eight feet apart.
• Maximum six customers at each table, and they must remain six feet apart if they do not live in the same home. Patrons can sit closer together if they are from a single household.
• Staff are to remove all seats at the bar.
• Social distancing must be maintained in restrooms.
• All employees are required to wear masks or face coverings.
• Staff are required to remain six feet away from coworkers and guests, except when serving food.
• One-time paper menus or boards are required, no reusable menus.
• Condiments must be single-use and not used by more than one table.
• Customers must use masks or face coverings when not at their table.
• Mingling or physical contact between customers at different tables is prohibited.

McLaughlin said restaurants do not need to seek planning permission to make changes to their existing outdoor facilities, adding that a number of restaurants want to put up tents. Many restaurants and bars already have outdoor facilities and it’s just a matter of reconfiguring their respective spaces, he said.

Businesses that don’t explicitly have permission to serve food outside on their business licences may still be allowed to do so, but need approval from Curfew Time.

Retailers and other businesses were allowed to open earlier this week and the premier said all had gone “extraordinarily well” with those businesses abiding by social-distancing and hygiene measures.

Curfew regulations change 7 June

Several curfew regulations will change starting Sunday, 7 June. The Compass has listed many of them here and you can visit this page on the Cayman Islands government website for more information.

The major changes for Grand Cayman include altering the hard-curfew time to 10pm-4:30am. Up to six people are also allowed to gather together in public and to participate in open-air, non-contact sports.

Starting Sunday, there will be no restrictions on beach access other than the times people can go to the beach, from 5:15am to 9pm. Alphabet days no longer apply to beach access.

Four new COVID-19 cases

Cayman has four new cases of COVID-19, Lee confirmed at Friday’s press briefing.

Of the four, one is believed to have been acquired due to contact with another person who had tested positive, while the other three were found through the ongoing screening programme.

Cayman now is up to 164 positive results with 13,947 people tested. Of the positive results, 93 people have fully recovered. and one person has died. That means there remains 70 active cases, with 69 of those being asymptomatic and one showing symptoms.

McLaughlin said based on Cayman’s infection rate of between 1.3% and 1.5%, and a population of about 65,000, nearly 1,000 people are likely to have contracted the virus here. However, he added the country has been able to slow its spread, calling Cayman “the most successful country in the world thus far in managing this pandemic”.

Lee added that 51% of Cayman Brac’s population has been tested, with 41% coming back negative and 200 other tests still pending. Three people in the Brac have tested positive since testing began there.

Government isolation facilities are housing 54 people, while another 220 people are isolating in their homes. Two people who were in isolation at Fairbanks Prison have been released after recovering fully.

Assistance still available to tourism workers

More than 1,000 Caymanians in the tourism industry who have been left without work due to the COVID-19 pandemic have registered with government for financial support.

Others interested in registering have until 11:59pm Sunday to do so and can click here to access the online application.

Government is assisting those who qualify with $1,000 per month for the next three months to help deal with the economic fallout of Cayman’s COVID-19 suppression measures.

Routine medical services likely to open up in a few weeks

Routine medical services are expected to resume before the end of the month at local hospitals and other medical offices when suppression measures move from moderate to minimal, Lee said.

Right now, patients are able to attend medical offices for urgent or time-sensitive matters.

Grand Cayman and Cayman Brac are currently at Level 3 (moderate), according to the government website. Level 2 (minimal) for Grand Cayman could come as soon as 22 June, when the current regulations expire.

Medical Officer of Health Dr. Samuel Williams-Rodriguez also said that the Health Services Authority will be launching a vaccine campaign for children who may have fallen behind on their immunisation schedules due to the pandemic. This would include HSA staffers reaching out to parents to organise immunisations as well as weekend vaccine clinics.

HMS Argus, HMS Medway to arrive in Cayman next week

British Royal Navy ships HMS Argus and HMS Medway are expected to arrive in Grand Cayman next week to take part in exercises to support the country in case of a hurricane or other natural disaster, according to Roper.

Those exercises will include bringing equipment and troops on shore.

Roper, however, confirmed that measures are in place to avoid contact between the ships’ crews and people on shore. The governor said both ships are COVID-19-free and crews have been isolated at sea, but that, out of an abundance of caution, no close contact will occur between the ships’ personnel and residents of Grand Cayman.

The ships are also providing helicopter cover as the RCIPS helicopters are off island undergoing routine matinenance.

Update on airbridge and evacuation flights

Roper said there are seats still available on the British Airways flight from Grand Cayman to London on 12 June. Anyone interested in booking that flight, can click here.

Almost 100 people are set to return on that flight, which will first touch down in  Turks and Caicos before travelling to Grand Cayman.

The governor said his office is continuing negotiations with the Indian government on evacuation flights to that country.

“We hope to have some news on that soon,” he said.

Private chartered flights have also been organised to Mexico on 8 June and to Canada on 18 July.