Micronesia’s first outbreak of Covid-19 has grown in a week to more than 1,000 cases, causing alarm in the Pacific island nation.
Last week, Micronesia is believed to have become the last country in the world with a population of more than 100,000 to suffer an outbreak of the disease, after avoiding it for two and a half years thanks to its isolation geographic and border controls. .
Health officials said cases were rising rapidly. It reported 140 new cases on Monday, bringing the total to 1,261, a number that includes some cases caught at the border before the outbreak.
Eight people have been hospitalized and one elderly man has died, authorities said.
Many lawmakers and senior officials have contracted the disease, including Vice President Yosiwo George, who has been admitted to hospital. Authorities said his condition is improving.
Camille Movick, whose family owns the Fusion restaurant in Pohnpei state, told The Associated Press that many people have been posting on Facebook asking, for example, for others to stay away from their homes.
“At first there was a bit of panic and concern with most people,” he said.
He said his restaurant remained open even though business was slow because many people were afraid to dine. He said some other restaurants closed their dining rooms and were only offering takeout services.
Ms Movick said the authorities had issued a directive that all people must wear masks in public, including outdoors, and faced fines of $1,000 for non-compliance.
He said one positive result was that the epidemic had caused many previously unvaccinated people to get their vaccinations.
He said many people suspected the virus might have been circulating before the first community case was confirmed last week because health authorities were not routinely testing patients for the disease.
Last year, Micronesia became one of the few countries to impose a broad mandate requiring all eligible citizens to get vaccinated against the coronavirus.
The government threatened to withhold federal funds from any individual or employer who did not follow the rules. Health authorities said this week that 75% of people aged five and over were fully vaccinated.
Ms Movick said many parts of society continued to operate as before, including many people working from their offices.
“Hopefully things will be back to normal soon,” Ms Movick said. “Just like in other countries, over time, they got over it and lifted the restrictions.”
