Caye Caulker Non-Residents Abandon the Island Due to Fears of COVID-19 Spread
Following the announcement of the first case of COVID-19, flights and water taxis were suspended to San Pedro which is under a state of emergency. Fear and panic drove many persons to attempt to leave the island. Many residents from neighbouring Caye Caulker are also trying to get to their families on the mainland in light of a predicted spread of the virus. On Monday, some residents were stranded in the city when water taxis suspended travel to Caye Caulker. Today, a group of employees made it to Belize City on a private boat. It caused a stir and health officials had to be called in. Here is News Five’s Hipolito Novelo with a report.
Hipolito Novelo, Reporting
Early this morning, two boats filled with employees set off from Caye Caulker Village. A total of twenty eight men disembarked from a marina along the Philip Goldson Highway. They left the island to be with their families during this COVID-19 crisis.
Aldair Carrillo
Hipolito Novelo
“You needed to come out from Caye Caulker?”
Aldair Carrillo, Employee, Blu Zen Resort
“Yes.”
Hipolito Novelo
“Why?”
Aldair Carrillo
“Because I want to go to my family. That’s all.”
Hipolito Novelo
“Where do you live?”
Aldair Carrillo
“San Roman, Rio Hondo.”
But this San Roman villager was stopped by police. Someone who noticed the group of men approaching the shore called the authorities with the belief that they were from San Pedro. The group of men was not allowed to leave until a health official arrived on site.
Carlos Coh
Carlos Coh, Employee, Blu Zen Resort
“The company offered a boat to bring us to Belize. We are not from San Pedro. We are from Caye Caulker and everybody stays together. . So I don’t see why they don’t want to let us go because we are here from this morning. From seven o’clock we are out there and police lock we down and we can’t go yet. Up to now it is ten o’clock and we haven’t had breakfast. We haven’t had tea. We need to go home.”
Hipolito Novelo
“What were you told when you arrived here?”
Carlos Coh
“Well nobody told us anything. The boat anchored and everybody came out. We didn’t know that someone had called police. We haven’t been paid. We came from work. Nobody got paid. So the guy, who does pay roll, he reached and he was there doing payroll and issuing everyone their monies. We see police reached and we couldn’t do anything. We had to stay. We could make a move. We had to say here until the Ministry of Health comes and do check up and make a move and we go home.”
Health officials arrived. The men were screened and interviewed before they were allowed to leave. Their Employer, Douglas Singh who owns Blu Zen stressed that Caye Caulker is not under quarantine and that travel to and from La Isla Carinosa is not restricted.
Doug Singh
Doug Singh, Owner, Blu Zen
“The press release was clear. It says that movement to and from San Pedro has been restricted. It is not restricted from anywhere else. But I have been virtually impossible to leave Caye Caulker other by private transportation because the water taxi services seems to have stopped. When you have that many workers who come from all over the country in my particular case we had about eight people from the Toledo District and most of the others are from the Corozal District. They needed to get home. They needed to be with their families. This is a very stressful time and you don’t want to contribute to that. They wanted to leave. We have to do what we have to do as employers to make sure that they get back to their families. Two of my private boats brought them to Belize City for them to get back to their families. How they are handled? I suppose you don’t know where they are coming from it is the authorities’ responsibility to verify that. They did but they are taking additional precautions. The day before coming from Caye Caulker was not an issue. Coming from Caye ought still not to be an issue because there are no confirmed cases n Caye Caulker but they are taking the additional precautions obviously and I guest their responsibility is not to take anyone’s word at it.”
Reporter
“Sir you didn’t seek any permission from Coast Guard to bring those private boats to shore?”
Douglas Singh
“There is no need to. Is there any requirement? It is coming from Caye Caulker. So I don’t know that there was anything done out of what should have been done. There is no request if you are leaving from Saint George’s Caye, if you are leaving from Goff’s Caye, if you are leaving from Tobacco Caye, from any other island other than San Pedro. So that would be a redundant no. not the best question under the circumstances.”
Hipolito Novelo
“However arrangement were made at the habour though?”
Douglas Singh
“There is no requirement is you are not coming from San Pedro.”
Hipolito Novelo
“Yes but I am asking that at that point was it chosen or…”
Douglas Singh
“No. I have a private peer at my house. There are other peers in Belize. There is a marina that we move our materials from and they would take it to the marina dock which is at the Philip Goldson Highway.”
Reporting for News Five, I am Hipolito Novelo.
