The Ministry of Health says it continues to prepare for COVID-19 in respect of equipment. As you may know, those critical COVID-19 patients who experience respiratory distress need ventilator support. At this time, K.H.M.H. has six ventilators, but is scheduled to receive additional units later this week. Doctor Marvin Manzanero tells us more. Dr. […]
The news is grim tonight in respect of the COVID-19 situation in Belize. There are over one hundred and sixty samples being processed at the Central Lab and later tonight, those results will be released and are expected to spike the number further. But what we know up to news time is that there are […]
As the number of positive cases continues to spike on Ambergris Caye, on Monday night, Caye Caulker recorded its first case of the novel coronavirus. Travel to nearby San Pedro was constant prior to the lockdown so the spread of COVID-19 to Caye Caulker was predictable. While the news was not unexpected, it has still […]
When San Pedro began seeing an increase in COVID-19 cases, a number of persons fled from the island to the mainland to escape not only the virus, but what would later become a second lockdown of Ambergris Caye from the rest of the country. But Chairlady Seleny Villanueva-Pott says that there is no rush to […]
The Leader of the Opposition today issued a statement on the spike of cases of the coronavirus. In the statement, John Briceño queries the real state of the healthcare system to deal with a second wave of the virus. According to Briceño, every day of testing has yielded staggering numbers that are overwhelming the health […]
The borders in the north and west are closed indefinitely. To the north, Mexico is placed at number three globally for the explosion of the corona virus. Quintana Roo is seeing growing numbers so the re-opening of the Corozal Free Zone is not likely to be anytime soon. Hundreds of employees have been sent home […]
COVID-19 has disrupted commercial activity for many entrepreneurs at micro, small and medium levels. A majority of those are part of the cross-section between tourism and agriculture and as many as fifty-four percent being classified as micro businesses. The impact of the pandemic has led to the temporary closure of thirty-five percent of all such […]
How are organizations working on environmental protection handling the COVID-19 situation? Well, across the world, conservation N.G.O.s are feeling the pressures. And it’s no different here in Belize. These N.G.O.s are reporting loss of over a million dollars in revenues because of the collapse of the tourism industry. To find out how far and wide […]
Five cops have tested positive for COVID-19 and nine others are in isolation with flu-like symptoms. Superintendent Christopher Noble of the San Pedro Police Formation says that the department was providing some support for those officers, but one of the areas they haven’t been able to help relates to mental health services. He made an […]
And one issue that the police officers in San Pedro do not have to deal with right now is disregard for the S.O.E. regulations. According to Christopher Noble, San Pedranos have been adhering to the laws and they have also been reporting and encouraging other residents who are not following the regulations. So, in short […]
The reopening of the Philip Goldson International Airport was scheduled for this Saturday, but was delayed after cases of COVID-19 surged. A survey shows that the majority of members of the Belize Tourism and Industry Association were in support of the resumption of commercial flights to Belize because the tourism dollars are needed to revive […]
Santa Martha Village in the Orange Walk District remains under lockdown tonight, where there is a community spread of the COVID-19 virus with an additional case being recorded on Monday. The population is about three hundred persons and the tiny village is located on the Old Northern Highway, a far distance from Orange Walk Town […]
Two communities in the Orange Walk South constituency have also been placed in quarantine. Positive COVID-19 cases have been indentified in Guinea Gras Village and in the Shipyard Community. Area Representative Jose Abelardo Mai says that the difficulty in Shipyard is that the Mennonite community has not been kept abreast of the realities of the […]
The rash of new COVID-19 cases has resulted in nightclubs and other establishments being shuttered once again and deejays, as well as other entertainers, are presently out of a job. So do they qualify for financial assistance under phase two of government’s unemployment relief programme? Much like event planners, there is room for creatives to […]
While many are in the unemployment line, COVID-19 has also forced others to innovate, particularly for small businesses, including barbershops and salons where proprietors have branched out into selling other products. The sale of face masks, for example, has seen an increase in demand for use as a fashion statement, aside from their practical use […]
In San Pedro, fourteen officers attached to the San Pedro Police Station are in isolation. Of those fourteen, five have tested positive for COVID-19; three of whom are on the island, while the other two are on the mainland. The remaining officers are exhibiting flu-like symptoms. Today, Officer in Command in San Pedro, Superintendent Chris […]
The largest number of positive cases is in San Pedro due to a community spread. According to the Ministry of Health, the actual source of the current infections is unclear, but the ministry states that a number of cases are linked to the first cluster. The second cluster is related to Living Word Church in […]
Last week, the Director of Health Services discarded reports that a fishing tournament in San Pedro was a super spreader event for the virus. But the Minister of Tourism and Civil Aviation Manuel Heredia Junior over the weekend spoke to Reef Radio on another matter weighing on the minds of many since the COVID-19 outbreak […]
As COVID-19 cases go up in the country, economic activity continues to slow down and everywhere, businesses are struggling to stay afloat. The government has rolled out a plan to assist micro, small and medium enterprises, but across the sector, larger companies are also feeling the pain and some are already facing bankruptcy. A and […]
According to Urbina Junior, A and R Enterprises has seven branches across the country. The company employs over two hundred persons. If the country goes in another lockdown, A and R will be forced send home more employees and possibly close one or two of its branches. On the Phone: Rosendo Urbina Junior, Managing […]
Almost fifty thousand persons have applied for unemployment relief through the Government of Belize amid the COVID-19 pandemic. As part of the second phase of the programme, workers who have been laid off as well as self-employed persons who have lost their jobs and means of income are eligible for assistance. According to Doctor Carla […]
Financial assistance being provided for micro, small and medium enterprises, through BELTRAIDE, another of government’s COVID-relief initiatives, hasn’t been without its snags. According to Doctor Leroy Almendarez, Executive Director of BELTRAIDE, there were several glitches initially with the system being used to process business relief applications. Dr. Leroy Almendarez, Executive Director, BELTRAIDE “Initially what […]
Similarly, the Unemployment Relief Program, in its first phase, also ran into problems with the system being used. According to Doctor Carla Barnett, the biggest hiccup involved the inputting of information, including names and social security numbers, into the database correctly. Dr. Carla Barnett, Minister of State, Ministry of Labor “One of the biggest […]
So, as you heard at the top of the news, five police officers attached to the San Pedro Police have tested positive for the COVID-19; but several others are also out of work, in isolation, after they started to experience flu-like symptoms. Superintendent Christopher Noble told the press today that they are checking on those […]
In the south, residents of San Marco Village are tonight upset and taking matters into their hands. Dozens of families have started to occupy lands along the Southern Highway, just outside of Punta Gorda. The residents say that they are tired of politicians sending surveyors to their community to survey the land for distribution. They […]
