Izzy
Senior Insider
From Le Journal, this addresses some issues raised in other threads and contains additional information. Translation by M. Google.
VALÉRIE DENUX: "FROM THE MOMENT WE REOPEN, WE IMPORT THE VIRUS"
by V.A 07/01/2020
Neither the tests nor the protocols fully guarantee that a case of Covid-19 will not be imported to the island, while the epidemic is flaring up on the American continent. Everyone must prepare for it, the authorities by establishing an effective health protocol, and the inhabitants by respecting the barrier gestures.
Since the establishment of the Bio Pôle laboratory drive, 515 PCR tests have been carried out, all negative. 110 serological tests (blood test at the fingertip) were analyzed, of which ten returned positive, that is to say that people have been in contact with the virus.
The second GeneXpert test machine purchased by the Collectivity has arrived on the island, with a thousand test cartridges, announced Bruno Magras Friday, June 26, in the preamble to the territorial council. "There is currently no Covid case in Saint Barthélemy. Tourists are playing the game despite a number of uncertainties, "said the President. “An electronic form is being validated by the ministry, which would allow us to better monitor compliance with the protocol by travelers before their departure for Saint-Barthélemy. There remains one point to clarify, border control. It should be the ARS or the state that does it, as I understand the gendarmerie does not wish to deal with it. The question arises, to call on a service provider to take people's temperature, check their tests or send them to the laboratory. "Indeed, many arrivals, local but also tourists, have been surprised in recent days to receive no special instructions on their arrival on the island, or even to find that they did not verify their certificate of negative Covid-19 test . They brought this concern to the attention of the authorities. A priori, it is complicated for the gendarmerie to carry out customs control at the same time as health control.
Reservations for July 4
Aircraft movements have intensified in Saint Jean, and traffic will further escalate with US National Day the weekend of July 4. Voyager is gradually increasing its schedule of connections between Saint Barth and Saint Martin, Great Bay resumes Friday, July 3.
Between June 2 and 25, the ferry loaded 1,406 people from Saint-Barthélemy, and disembarked 1,360. At the airport, from June 1 to 25, 524 travelers arrived, and 746 left. Most with Air Antilles and Saint-Barth Commuter. Tradewind communicates with its American customers, offering them direct flights from Puerto Rico to Saint Barth. It carried 94 customers over the same period (52 on arrival and 42 on departure). Note that the lifting of the imperative grounds did not take place officially until June 22, and a little earlier for the Antilles between them.
"We can't fight the impossible"
If Saint-Barth like all the Antilles needs to resume tourism, it seems impossible to guarantee that the virus will not be imported. Last week, eight cases of Covid-19 were identified in Guadeloupe, all arriving by plane. In Antigua, 39 passengers on the same flight tested positive for Covid. They were mainly residents, returning from the Dominican Republic. All were placed in quarantine.
"From the moment we reopen, we import the virus," says Valérie Denux, director general of ARS Guadeloupe Saint-Martin Saint-Barthélemy. "You can't fight the impossible. "We must prepare for it: there will be cases imported to Saint-Barth, whether the tests are performed on D-3, D + 1 or D + 7. United States, Brazil, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico… “All around us, the virus is circulating. We should expect a second wave. "
Emphasis is therefore placed on the fastest possible detection of positive cases, their isolation, and then on the identification of contact cases. And Valérie Denux invites us to return to respecting barrier gestures. "There is relaxation everywhere, it is understandable. But we must remain vigilant. Avoid touching each other, respect the distance, wear a mask as soon as you are in a group ... "
Sunday tests
The prefecture is also focusing on preparation in the event of a positive arrival at Covid. She is looking for a solution with the laboratory so that the tests can also be carried out on Sunday: today, a visitor who arrives on Saturday must wait on Monday for screening. It also intends to assist the ARS in the event of the detection of an infected person to identify contact cases.
In Saint-Barthélemy, visitors are asked to provide a test carried out three days before their departure, or failing to be tested on their arrival on the territory, and to confine themselves while awaiting the result. This protocol is in force although there is no legislative text framing it. Bruno Magras declined to comment this week, saying he was "lost in the face of government shifts. The state is expected to make further arrangements at the end of the state of health emergency on July 10. A priori, a global standardization of the test on D-3 for travelers is in the pipeline, desired by the WHO. However, each country or territory may adopt additional entry conditions or special restrictions.
---------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------------- --------------------
> Samples are taken at the drive, in the street that runs alongside the Collectivité hotel. Do not go directly to the Bio Pôle laboratory. To make an appointment, you must call +590 (0) 9 76 02 44 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. or send an email to covid19sbh@biopoleantilles.com
Form to complete: https://www.biopoleantilles.fr/COVID-19-depistage-par-pcr-du-sars-cov-2/
Appointments can be made for the same day or overnight. The results of the PCR and serological tests are given the same day or the next morning.
VALÉRIE DENUX: "FROM THE MOMENT WE REOPEN, WE IMPORT THE VIRUS"
by V.A 07/01/2020
Neither the tests nor the protocols fully guarantee that a case of Covid-19 will not be imported to the island, while the epidemic is flaring up on the American continent. Everyone must prepare for it, the authorities by establishing an effective health protocol, and the inhabitants by respecting the barrier gestures.
Since the establishment of the Bio Pôle laboratory drive, 515 PCR tests have been carried out, all negative. 110 serological tests (blood test at the fingertip) were analyzed, of which ten returned positive, that is to say that people have been in contact with the virus.
The second GeneXpert test machine purchased by the Collectivity has arrived on the island, with a thousand test cartridges, announced Bruno Magras Friday, June 26, in the preamble to the territorial council. "There is currently no Covid case in Saint Barthélemy. Tourists are playing the game despite a number of uncertainties, "said the President. “An electronic form is being validated by the ministry, which would allow us to better monitor compliance with the protocol by travelers before their departure for Saint-Barthélemy. There remains one point to clarify, border control. It should be the ARS or the state that does it, as I understand the gendarmerie does not wish to deal with it. The question arises, to call on a service provider to take people's temperature, check their tests or send them to the laboratory. "Indeed, many arrivals, local but also tourists, have been surprised in recent days to receive no special instructions on their arrival on the island, or even to find that they did not verify their certificate of negative Covid-19 test . They brought this concern to the attention of the authorities. A priori, it is complicated for the gendarmerie to carry out customs control at the same time as health control.
Reservations for July 4
Aircraft movements have intensified in Saint Jean, and traffic will further escalate with US National Day the weekend of July 4. Voyager is gradually increasing its schedule of connections between Saint Barth and Saint Martin, Great Bay resumes Friday, July 3.
Between June 2 and 25, the ferry loaded 1,406 people from Saint-Barthélemy, and disembarked 1,360. At the airport, from June 1 to 25, 524 travelers arrived, and 746 left. Most with Air Antilles and Saint-Barth Commuter. Tradewind communicates with its American customers, offering them direct flights from Puerto Rico to Saint Barth. It carried 94 customers over the same period (52 on arrival and 42 on departure). Note that the lifting of the imperative grounds did not take place officially until June 22, and a little earlier for the Antilles between them.
"We can't fight the impossible"
If Saint-Barth like all the Antilles needs to resume tourism, it seems impossible to guarantee that the virus will not be imported. Last week, eight cases of Covid-19 were identified in Guadeloupe, all arriving by plane. In Antigua, 39 passengers on the same flight tested positive for Covid. They were mainly residents, returning from the Dominican Republic. All were placed in quarantine.
"From the moment we reopen, we import the virus," says Valérie Denux, director general of ARS Guadeloupe Saint-Martin Saint-Barthélemy. "You can't fight the impossible. "We must prepare for it: there will be cases imported to Saint-Barth, whether the tests are performed on D-3, D + 1 or D + 7. United States, Brazil, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico… “All around us, the virus is circulating. We should expect a second wave. "
Emphasis is therefore placed on the fastest possible detection of positive cases, their isolation, and then on the identification of contact cases. And Valérie Denux invites us to return to respecting barrier gestures. "There is relaxation everywhere, it is understandable. But we must remain vigilant. Avoid touching each other, respect the distance, wear a mask as soon as you are in a group ... "
Sunday tests
The prefecture is also focusing on preparation in the event of a positive arrival at Covid. She is looking for a solution with the laboratory so that the tests can also be carried out on Sunday: today, a visitor who arrives on Saturday must wait on Monday for screening. It also intends to assist the ARS in the event of the detection of an infected person to identify contact cases.
In Saint-Barthélemy, visitors are asked to provide a test carried out three days before their departure, or failing to be tested on their arrival on the territory, and to confine themselves while awaiting the result. This protocol is in force although there is no legislative text framing it. Bruno Magras declined to comment this week, saying he was "lost in the face of government shifts. The state is expected to make further arrangements at the end of the state of health emergency on July 10. A priori, a global standardization of the test on D-3 for travelers is in the pipeline, desired by the WHO. However, each country or territory may adopt additional entry conditions or special restrictions.
---------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------------- --------------------
> Samples are taken at the drive, in the street that runs alongside the Collectivité hotel. Do not go directly to the Bio Pôle laboratory. To make an appointment, you must call +590 (0) 9 76 02 44 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. or send an email to covid19sbh@biopoleantilles.com
Form to complete: https://www.biopoleantilles.fr/COVID-19-depistage-par-pcr-du-sars-cov-2/
Appointments can be made for the same day or overnight. The results of the PCR and serological tests are given the same day or the next morning.