Last Updated on August 4, 2021, 6:13 AM AST by Anthony Morris
The French island of the Caribbean, Guadeloupe, will undergo a new partial closure for at least three weeks to combat an increase in Covid-19.
The new measures begin on Wednesday, with the reintroduction of a daily starting point between 20:00 and 05:00. Travel during the day is limited to a radius of 10 km (six miles).
Bars, gyms, stadiums and swimming pools will be closed, but shops will remain open with restaurants serving lunch.
Valerie Denux, director-general of the regional health agency in Guadeloupe, says the number of cases has multiplied by more than 10 in the past three weeks, to more than 3,000 cases per week.
“We are in a catastrophic situation,” she added.
The news comes when another French Caribbean island, Martinique, closed for at least three weeks on Friday. And the French island of Reunion entered a partial lockout of two weeks this weekend.
France is facing a fourth wave of the virus, with about half of the population fully vaccinated. But the figures are significantly lower in the French overseas territories, according to the news agency AFP.
President Emmanuel Macron went to TikTok and Instagram on Monday to try to obtain incorrect information about vaccines after a third weekend of protest marches over a controversial Covid health pass.
Anthony Morris covers stories related to politics and regional developments. His in-depth reporting about governance and reforms makes him stand out in regional journalism, with a deep analysis of political trends and their impact on Caribbean communities.
