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It’s not over: “Zero” COVID-19 cases in BZ, but second wave possible, says DHS

GeneralIt’s not over: “Zero” COVID-19 cases in BZ, but second wave possible, says DHS

BELIZE CITY, Tues. May 5, 2020– The Ministry of Health reported this afternoon that there are no cases of COVID-19 in Belize right now.

The last remaining two cases both tested negative twice, confirming that there are no other persons in the country with the novel coronavirus.

While there is no positive case of COVID-19 in the country, the Ministry of Health confirms that it has fifteen cases under investigation. Director of Health Services Dr. Marvin Manzanero cautioned that the country in not yet free of COVID-19.

Not only did he state that Belize is not yet free of the deadly virus, but he also noted that the Ministry of Health is bracing for a possible second wave of COVID-19.

The number of persons who tested positive for COVID-19 in Belize reached 18. But while over 250,000 persons have died from COVID-19 worldwide, only two deaths occurred in Belize. Presently there are almost 3.5 million persons infected with the virus worldwide, and more than 1 million persons have recovered from the virus.

In an interview this afternoon, News5 asked Dr. Manzanero, “We are down to zero active COVID-19 cases; does this mean that we are free from COVID-19? What is the case?”

“That is a piece of good information that I just received, and today, we got our data earlier than normal. I guess people were in a hurry to confirm the last two active cases. And the short answer to the question is no. We are not free of COVID-19 and I think we need to get down to the point that COVID-19 is going to stay with us. That is the piece of bad news in the good news that we are delivering this afternoon,” Dr. Manzanero replied.

Asked if the second wave would be more fatal than the first, Dr. Manzanero responded: “If we haven’t learned anything, then we are going to be in trouble. This should have allowed us to establish a new norm, how we are going to go about doing our lives as we move along. The social structures that we used to have will no longer be in place, so we have to be mindful of that. Those social measures will have to remain in place. They will not go away anytime soon.

“So if Belizeans start to feel that there is no potential case out there, remember that we should be preparing for when there is a second wave. This is a new norm. I notice people started questioning when we said this is the new norm for the next two years.”

“I think you mean two months,” he was asked.

“No, we mean two years, if not more. I don’t know if travel will be the same. So those things we need to start looking, digesting and understanding, that that is how we are going to go about as we conduct our daily business, because if not, then we are going to have a bigger wave with potentially more cases if we are not fully prepared,” said Manzanero.

Feature photo: Dr. Marvin Manzanero

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