Addu City, Maldives — The Health Emergency Operation Center (HEOC) of Maldives has informed that at present, there are a total of 44 active Covid-19 cases cases in the southernmost atoll of Maldives, Addu City.
HEOC informed that to date, 25 people has tested positive Covid-19 from the major Hulhumeedhoo cluster that was found a couple days ago in a Maldives Transport and Contracting Company (MTCC) site.
While random sampling was carried out within the two islands to check if the virus had spread within the community, the Mayor of Addu City, Abdulla Sodiq informed that the samples returned negative for Covid-19. Despite this, HEOC noted that although no contacts were established at the time, as per the information received by authorities, contact tracing and sampling is still ongoing in the districts to determine the scale of the spread.
HEOC informed that the Aviation cluster that was found two days ago has resulted in 22 active Covid-19 cases in the joint islands in Addu City (Hithadhoo, Maradhoo, Maradhoofeydhoo & Feydhoo) with 100 primary contacts traced so far.
In addition to this, it has been confirmed that an individual, who traveled from Addu to Thinadhoo has tested positive for Covid-19 and that they were a close contact of the two individuals who tested positive for Covid-19 in Hithadhoo. Along with this, the authorities suspect that GDh. Hoadedhdhoo is at risk as well according to local news.
The first two cases of the Hithadhoo Cluster were identified from Hithadhoo on Saturday. They were contacts of a team who arrived from Male’ for an Aviation Security Command training in Addu City. Mayor Sodiq informed that several staff of Gan International Airport partook in the training. This is why, contact tracing has been initiated for all participants.
As a precautionary measure, Addu City Council has ordered all Restaurants and Cafés in Addu City to temporarily stop dine in service as there is a possibility of having a community spread in the city.
The City Council has informed that starting from 1600hrs of today, all restaurants and cafe’s in Addu City must close until further notice. However, they mentioned that services can be continued via delivery or takeaway method. The Council advised to avoid accepting cash during deliveries.
In addition to this, Addu Council has set several other restrictions as well. They are:
- Closing all food cart (Dhivehi: gaadiya) services in Addu City.
- To take all precautionary measures in the shops in Addu City and to avoid exceeding the maximum persons capacity in the shops.
- To not gather at public spaces and parks.
- The Mayor of Addu City, Abdullah Sodiq has advised the citizens in Addu City to remain at home to contain the spread of Covid-19, with the possibility of a community spread.
Although Addu City is currently under monitoring status, the situation of the islands are at a normal rate. Addu City, the neighboring island GDh. Thinadhoo has also been placed under monitoring status due to the Hithadhoo Cluster.
