Deyalsingh: ‘Closed borders saved us’ from new coronavirus strains

Minister of Health Terrence Deyalsingh said that Trinidad and Tobago’s closed borders have ‘saved us’ from having cases of the new UK and South African strains of Sars-Cov-2, the virus that causes Covid-19.

Speaking at the health ministry’s media conference on Covid-19, Deyalsingh said that the new variants of the virus could impact any decision to reopen the border.

Photo: A plane prepares to take off from the London City Airport in London, UK.

“The new variants… will cause us to reexamine every single thing that we do now because the evidence coming out is that this new variant is 70% more transmissible. Think about what that means in a country that has community spread,” he said. “We will be considering the impact of that new variant in all decisions going forward.”

The Ministry of Health has not yet chosen a vaccine for use in Trinidad and Tobago. Speaking at the health ministry’s Covid-19 update, Minister of Health Terrence Deyalsingh said they had requested more technical information on vaccines before they could determine which is the most appropriate for use in Trinidad and Tobago.

There are four vaccine candidates under consideration: Pfizer/BioNtech, Moderna, Oxford/AstraZeneca and Sanofi. Of these, only Pfizer/Biontech’s vaccine has so far been approved for use by the World Health Organisation (WHO). With a required storage temperature of -80 degrees, the Pfizer vaccine also needs the coldest storage, which causes logistical challenges when transporting and storing the vials.

The country is not yet ready to receive the vaccine, but Deyalsingh said the ministry was in an ‘excellent place’ in its preparation.

Photo: The novel coronavirus.

The health ministry reported 10 new infections of Sars-Cov-2 today. This brings the total confirmed cases of Covid-19 from March 2020 to 7196. There have been no new deaths reported, so the death toll remains at 127.

There are 23 patients in hospital, 63 in step-down facilities and 232 in state quarantine facilities, including 17 inmates in the prison system. There are 325 confirmed active cases in the country.

More from Wired868
Daly Bread: Game of blood; T&T needs empirical data on blood collection

Obtaining blood when persons need it can be a harrowing experience.  Very recently, I felt it vicariously while a comrade Read more

More transmissible, not necessarily more severe; new Covid-19 strain, JN.1, reaches T&T

Trinidad and Tobago recorded its first case of new Covid-19 variant, JN.1, according to Carpha today. At present, global health Read more

Daly Bread: Health pomposities—serve and save, don’t hector

The administration of many ministries of government is in continuous decline, while the politicians have wasted tons of money and Read more

Vaneisa: Flooding, drought, earthquakes, war… no wonder we struggle with mental health

A friend messaged me a couple of days ago to say that her doctor had put her on anti-anxiety meds Read more

Vaneisa: Foggy days of fatigue and other post-Covid symptoms

I’ve come to believe that what I had thought to be a vicious bout of both acid reflux and one Read more

Dear Editor: If feters are doing as they please, why are we mandated to wear masks?

“[…] Over the last week we have held the Jam Naked Fete and the Stink & Dutty Fete, which seemed Read more

About Fayola Bostic

Fayola Bostic is a writer and copyeditor. She is the founder of Write Energy Ltd, which creates content for technical industry brands. Fayola is a former engineer who has been writing professionally for more than a decade.

Check Also

Daly Bread: Game of blood; T&T needs empirical data on blood collection

Obtaining blood when persons need it can be a harrowing experience.  Very recently, I felt …

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.