An emergency order was issued Saturday to shut down a large party as concerns grew about the rapid spread of the new Omicron variant of COVID-19.
Public health officials said suspected cases of the highly transmissible variant have now risen to 23. Government is recommending all big events to be cancelled and urging people to avoid large gatherings.
An emergency order was issued Saturday by Chief Medical Officer Dr. Autilia Newton for the cancellation of the Rub a Dub party.
Police and public health officials visited the Lions Community Centre just after 9pm and told the party promoter to shut it down, event officials confirmed to the Cayman Compass.
Four cases of the highly contagious strain of the virus have been confirmed and a further 23 potential cases identified.
“Of these likely cases, seven are in persons with no travel history which is suggestive of local community transmission of the Omicron variant,” a Public Health statement said.
Premier Wayne Panton, in the statement, said, the Chief Medical Officer has issued an emergency order to cancel a large event planned for this evening.
“In light of this rapidly evolving situation, I want to appeal to members of the community to carefully consider your attendance at any large gathering and to adhere to all safety protocols. The Omicron variant is extremely contagious and we must do all we can to slow the spread,” he said.
Earlier on Saturday the Netherlands announced lockdown measures to slow their spread of the variant there as 77 countries now confirm presence of the variant.
Medical Officer of Health Dr. Samuel Williams-Rodriguez urged Caymanians, residents and visitors to strictly practise COVID-19 prevention measures, including hand washing, mask wearing and social distancing throughout the holiday season.
“These simple guidelines, combined with the full vaccination course and booster, offer the best chance of protecting ourselves and those we love,” Williams-Rodriguez said.
Further updates, Public Health said, will be shared with the public as more details become available.
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I am disappointed with the lack of leadership our politicians are showing on this national emergency in the making. The briefing last week was over long, at times rambling, overly verbose and gave no sense of the fact that we are very rapidly heading into a potential crisis in the coming weeks. Cayman needs clear simple messaging combined with a presentation of what a worst case scenario will look like. To change behaviour people have to be worried not reassured. (If you look at UK predictions and divide by 1000 to allow for population they suggest we get 8 people dead a day here. -Hopefully sun, younger population and outdoor living would lower that horrific number. ) The level of hope and denial here is very concerning, particularly from the medics who should know better and be advising on this.
No one wants a Netherlands style lockdown here, it would be disastrous for jobs, hospitality and tourism, but unless we have a clear booster campaign and people stop shaking hands and hugging each other and mask up and space out this is exactly where we are heading.
Hope for the best, but we must implement plans for the worst.
Totally agree. Cayman is putting greed ahead of the health of its population.