The Briceño Administration, fourteen days after taking office, has unveiled its strategy to control the further spread of COVID-19 in the country. The way forward includes a curfew which commences on Saturday. It will be from nine p.m. to five a.m. for an initial period of twenty-one days. What the new plan of action does […]
The Ministry of Health also plans to hire additional human resources such as nurses, doctors, specialist, health staff, support staff for deployment to all regional and community hospitals. Health and Wellness Minister, Michel Chebat says that one of the key areas his ministry will focus on is the purchase of medical and pharmaceutical supplies such […]
The Ministry of Health and Wellness will immediately implement and scale up the use of rapid testing in all district hospitals for symptomatic patients and close contacts. Minister Chebat says that testing sites outside of the hospital will be established in urban communities. Two mobile swabbing teams for rural communities will be created to better […]
According to Minister Chebat, under former Minister of Health Pablo Marin and Prime Minister Dean Barrow, there was no clear plan to address the COVID-19 pandemic. He says that there was no clear testing strategy, revealing that there is a backlog of more than two thousand samples waiting to be processed at the Central Medical […]
Minister Chebat made the revelations as Director of Health Services, Doctor Marvin Manzanero sat at the head table. Under the Barrow Administration, Doctor Manzanero was the expert leading the charge against COVID-19, but during today’s press briefing, he took a backseat. Doctor Manzanero, however, was asked about Chebat’s description of the former administration’s COVID-19 response. […]
On Wednesday night, the Belize Medical and Dental Association met to discuss the severity of the COVID-19 pandemic and its effects on the healthcare system, in public and private facilities across the country. The situation is grave as the number of cases that require hospitalization and urgent medical attention is overwhelming the system. Doctor Fernando […]
With the healthcare system stretched to capacity, there is a real fear that with not enough spaces to accommodate COVID-19 victims, the mortality rate will continue to climb and deaths will be recorded outside of the facilities where people will be waiting to seek medical attention. Dr. Fernando Cuellar, Internist, Belize Medical Associates “There’s […]
Police believe that taxi driver Lynroy Longsworth is a victim of the ongoing gang war in the Saint Martin’s area of Belize City. On Wednesday, Longsworth was operating his dollar van along Mahogany Street and while he dropped off a passenger, a gunman exited Periwinkle Street and opened fire at him. He was struck multiple […]
Can area representative Cordel Hyde help to stem the violence that has erupted in his constituency since Monday? Well, we know that the long-time representative has a lot of influence in the division where more than ninety-percent of the electors who went to the polls voted for him. But can this power help with the […]
Police say a minor was behind the killing of well-known Bowen and Bowen employee Sean Menzies. The cops have arrested a sixteen-year-old boy who was charged with the murder that happened on November eighteenth on Lancaster Street in Belize City. In addition, police are upgrading the charge of abetment to commit murder against twenty-two-year-old Jeffry […]
The Ministry of Health and Wellness recorded two more COVID-related deaths today. A male from the Toledo District and a female from the Orange Walk District lost their battle with the deadly virus. An additional ninety-two COVID-19 cases were also identified, bringing the total of confirmed cases to five thousand, five hundred and fifteen and […]
The Belize Coast Guard says that they have managed to keep the COVID-19 infection rate low among their members because they have implemented strict measures. According to Acting Commandant Gregory Soberanis, there are only twenty-two officers who are currently COVID-19 positive. He says that they have kept the figure at a little over twenty or […]
The Ministry of Health and Wellness will be embarking on rapid testing in different parts of the country. One frontline unit that’s going to benefit from those tests is the Belize Police Department. As we’ve reported, Commissioner of Police Chester Williams has voiced his concerns about getting tests for his officers who are on the […]
Another matter that the Commissioner of Police also spoke about is the control of COVID-19 in holding cells. ComPol Williams told the press that while the cell blocks were seen as crowded spaces in the past, they have put in a few controls to prevent the spread of the virus. Williams noted that despite these […]
Earlier this week, Commissioner of Police Chester Williams gave the order for over a dozen contraband canoes to be returned to the villagers of Santa Cruz in Orange Walk. The canoes were confiscated a few months ago with the objective to reduce border-jumping in the area. Returning the canoes to the villagers has caused many […]
Tonight, the Belize Coast Guard is breathing a sigh of relief in what could have been a tragedy at sea for two of its sailors and three cops. The Coast Guard reports that on Wednesday night they received a call about a drowning at Turneffe Island Resort and this morning the team deployed to sea […]
So, there you heard how the five officers were rescued after their vessel capsized. It’s a major tragedy that was averted – and we asked the Acting Commandant how so? Commander Gregory Soberanis tells us that it could have gone terribly wrong, but thanks to an adherence to protocols, the five persons made it out […]
The People’s United Party’s manifesto committed to making the Belize Police Department four thousand strong and on November eleventh, when they formed the government, the people are holding them to that promise. At the moment there are over two thousand cops in the force and considering all the constraints the government faces, including dwindling coffers […]
A public consultation being held by the Department of Environment is underway virtually on the Government of Belize’s Press Office Facebook page. The meeting is to get feedback from stakeholders in the tourism sector on the proposed development of a cruise tourism port in Belize City. Under the previous government administration, the proposal of constructing […]
Greenwood’s primary concern also centers around the preservation of Belize’s barrier reef as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Tom Greenwood, Executive, FECTAB “The main concern is the lack of an overall cruise port strategy for Belize. The fact that there are half-truths and other environmental concerns within the scope of this entire presentation this […]
This morning, the new Minister of the Blue Economy and Civil Aviation gave his maiden address at a handing over event where the Taiwanese Ambassador presented several pieces of equipment to the Fisheries Department. It is part of a regional initiative called INCAVPESCA and the focus of the effort today is the fight against COVID-19 […]
Tonight, there are over two thousand, three hundred Belizeans battling COVID-19. Most of those persons are quarantined at home. Some have no symptoms and others experience mild or moderate symptoms. Tonight in Healthy Living, we bring you the story of one of those persons, a well-known face and voice to many Belizeans. Marleni Cuellar, […]
