COVID-19 Measures under the Disaster Risk Management Act

The Office of the Prime Minister today shared an update on COVID-19 Measures under the Disaster Risk Management Act, read the document below:

The Cabinet has decided on the following measures:

• The islandwide nightly 8 pm to 5 am curfew is being extended for the period February 24 – March 1, 2021. Accordingly, the curfew will commence at 8 pm on Wednesday, February 24, 2021, until 5 am the following morning, ending at 5 am Monday, March 1, 2021.

• The public gathering limit remains at 10 persons until February 28, 2021.
In addition, the Ministry of Education, Youth and Information have advised schools to focus on students preparing for exit exams at Grades 6, 11, 12, and 13. Other students should not be on the campuses and should be engaged through other established learning modalities.
A further review of various measures under the Order due to expire on February 28, 2021, will be undertaken and an announcement made regarding measures that will be in place effective March 1, 2021.

In the meantime, Prime Minister Holness is reiterating that the virus is spread when persons move.

Persons are being encouraged to stay within their homes as much as possible and minimize movement for necessary and productive activities such as going to work, obtaining food and medical supplies, accessing medical services, and conducting business and financial transactions.
All citizens must continue to keenly observe the infection prevention and control measures to guard against the spread of COVID-19.

These measures include maintaining a 6 ft physical distance from others, frequently washing hands with soap and water or using sanitizer, and always wearing a mask in public. “Only through this concerted effort to control the spread of the virus will we be able to maintain a level of productivity to secure lives and livelihoods and recover more quickly from this crisis,” said Prime Minister Holness.