Fiji has reported four new cases of COVID-19, and all cases are close contacts of existing cases from the Nadali cluster.
These cases were confirmed after running more than 2500 lab tests yesterday.
Ministry of Health and Medical Services permanent secretary Dr James Fong said because of a steadily rising number of cases, they were concerned that Nadali – located just outside Nausori – had become a source of widespread COVID transmission.
“We have cordoned off the entire Nadali area as a screening zone, meaning no one is allowed to leave Nadali until we screen, swab, and clear everyone in the area. Those who need to return to the area may do so provided they do not leave,” Dr Fong said in his national COVID-19 announcement tonight.
Meanwhile, in relation to the two patients who were admitted into intensive care yesterday, Dr Fong said both patients were responding well to treatment.
He said their teams were attending dutifully to those patients and providing them with the best possible care.
Quick facts announced this evening:
- 4 new cases (all closed contacts of the Nadali cluster)
- 6 patients recovered
- 49 active cases in isolation
- 3 border quarantine case
- 34 locally transmitted
- 12 under investigation to determine source of transmission so are considered community transmission until proven otherwise
- Fiji has had 178 cases in total since the first case was detected on March 19, 2020
- 125 recoveries since then
- 4 deaths during that period
Source: Dr Alisha Sahu-Khan, Ministry of Health COVID-19 briefing, May 18
