Ha'apai schools, Gov't offices closed as COVID-19 found in community [1]
Monday, April 4, 2022 - 13:25
All schools and government departments in Ha‘apai are closed, starting today, after the first community transmission of COVID-19 was detected there, the Prime Minister's Office announced last night.
The PMO expected the numbers to be revealed by the Ministry of Health at a press conference this afternoon.
Schools and government departments will remain closed until further notice.
Prime Minister Hon. Hu’akavameiliku stated that the closure will enable the Ministry of Health team to do contact tracing, surveillance and do booster shots.
“Ha’apai had recorded positive cases within Managed Isolation Quarantine (MIQs) in the last week, but this could be the first discovery of community cases in Ha’apai.”
However, it was not confirmed how many COVID-19 cases were detected in the community at the time the government made the decision.
The Prime Minister’s office said the Ministry of Health will have a Zoom Press Conference today at 2:00 pm “and will surely reveal the numbers”
Death in Tongatapu
Meanwhile, another COVID death on March 31 in Nuku'alofa, has been reported by the family of the deceased.
Cases have been increasing rapidly in Tonga since March, this year.
The World Health Organisation updates confirmed figures weekly, and their graphs show how the current wave of infections has been increasing.