The Préfecture has issued a Press Release this morning. Travel Limitations will be implemented between St Martin and Sint Maarten as of Noon on Friday, July 31. Travel will be permitted by authorized people only. The Press Release is below, followed by a Google Translation.
Press release of July 29, 2020
COVID-19: IMPLEMENTATION OF TRAVEL LIMITATIONS BETWEEN SAINT-MARTIN AND SINT-MAARTEN AS OF JULY 31 AT 12 PM
Significant increase in the number of cases in Saint-Martin and Saint-Barthélemy
Since the health bulletin of July 24, 1 new case has been detected in Saint Barthélemy, bringing the number of cases to 2, and 4 new cases in Saint-Martin, bringing the number of cases to 7.
In Saint-Barthélemy, the new positive case is linked to a cluster of people from Guadeloupe who stayed on Saint-Martin and frequented establishments in Sint-Maarten.
In Saint-Martin,
- 1 case is still under investigation;
- 1 patient is hospitalized in Sint Maarten and 3 positive contact cases are linked to it;
- 1 case is a contact of an indigenous case;
- 1 case was imported from the Dominican Republic on a repatriation flight from the United States that arrived
to Juliana.
The government of Sint Maarten announced today that it has counted 45 positive cases.
This active circulation of the virus is believed to be at the origin of the contamination of 6 people in Guadeloupe having
stayed on the island and created a cluster still under investigation in Guadeloupe.
Need to slow down the spread of the virus by limiting movement
Due to the increase in the number of cases and limited health capacities, the Prefecture and the ARS,
after discussions with the Collectivity of Saint-Martin and in agreement with the Ministry of Overseas, decide
to put in place a traffic restriction between the two parts of the island from Friday July 31 at 12 noon.
The Prefect spoke today about this decision this morning with the Prime Minister of
Sint Maarten.
Controls will be put in place at the Bellevue roundabout and at Belleplaine by the staff of the Police in
borders and the National Gendarmerie. The border points of Cupecoy and Baie aux Huîtres will be
blocked from this date.
Only people with a professional or medical reason will be able to cross the border. This pattern will be
verified on the basis of the certificates already issued by the Prefecture in June during the previous limitation of
circulation. These certificates may be reissued and collected from the Prefecture services.
Medical requests can be made to the email address:
covid19pref@saint-barth-saintmartin.gouv.fr
Authorized travelers from Juliana airport (from mainland France, from the Schengen area
or from the list of safe countries) will be allowed to pass by presenting their plane ticket, less their PCR test
72 hours with a negative result and the certificate of honor given by the company or present on the site
of the Prefecture (
http://www.saint-barth-saint-martin...gence-sanitaire-nouvelles-modalites-d-entree- a-Saint-Martin-part-french-Saint-Barthelemy-from-du-
18-July-2020).
These binding measures are essential to limit the circulation of the virus and avoid reaching the capacity limits of our health system. They will be put in place temporarily while controlling the circulation of the virus on the island.
The health of the population is the only argument that should guide our decisions.