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‘Shut down for what?’ - Westmoreland councillor opposes COVID-19 lockdown

Published:Wednesday | December 16, 2020 | 12:05 AMAlbert Ferguson/Gleaner Writer
TUFTON
TUFTON

WESTERN BUREAU:

Ian Myles, councillor for the Little London division in the Westmoreland Municipal Corporation (WMC), is pushing back against a possible lockdown of the western Jamaica parish, which is the new epicentre of the spread of COVID-19 in Jamaica.

Even though 18 per cent of the samples taken in his own division recently returned positive results for the virus, the councillor has downplayed the need for a lockdown to stem the rising tide of infections.

“Shut down for what?” asked Myles during the most recent monthly sitting of the WMC. “What is it that we are putting in place to ensure that those who have tested positive can stay home without having to go out and fend for themselves?”

Health and Wellness Minister Dr Christopher Tufton said that based on surveillance done by the national epidemiological team, the Ministry of Health and Wellness has been seeing a worrying trend in the western half of the island, especially in Westmoreland.

“When we look at the deaths in Westmoreland alone, we have had 22 deaths overall, 12 of those recorded in the last two weeks. Our surveillance at the hospital that serves the parish also shows a worrying trend, with COVID admissions increasing steadily over the last three months,” Tufton told the Parliament recently.

RELUCTANCE TO STAY HOME

In light of the lockdown plans, Myles is seeking help for the residents in his division, as well as those in other divisions in Westmoreland who will also be impacted by the health and wellness ministry’s action.

“It can’t be that persons who have tested positive are being left to fend for themselves and are only hearing in the news that Westmoreland will be shut down,” said Myles, who admitted that some persons who have tested positive for COVID-19 are not obeying the quarantine rules and are turning up in shopping centres, seeking to stock up on food items and other essential needs.

“If we can give them something and say, ‘Here is food, stay home,’ I am sure that it will assist in reducing that reluctance that we are now seeing in residents, who are not abiding by the quarantine protocols,” said Myles.

In responding to Myles’ concerns, Dr Marcia Graham, the medical officer of health for Westmoreland, urged residents across the parish to rise to the occasion and be their brothers’ keeper in an effort to control the spread of the virus.

“Persons should first seek to exercise their responsibilities, as it is impossible to expect the Ministry of Health to be responding to all the needs of each individual,” said Graham, while noting that when an individual test positive, he or she is provided with contact details for mental health support, while contact tracing is being carried out.

Graham also noted that of the top 20 COVID-19 affected communities across the island, eight are from Westmoreland, including Little London, which is one of the main hotspots.

As of December 14, Westmoreland had recorded 23 deaths as a result of COVID-19 complications, while 526 persons who reside in the parish have been confirmed positive with the dreaded virus. Some 276 persons have so far died nationally, while 8,212 of those who were previously infected have recovered, from a countrywide infection figure of 11,875.

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