(CMC) — The Grenada government has imposed a seven-day 24-hour curfew beginning on Monday night as it warned that people were ignoring earlier measures aimed at curbing the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19).
“Every time you break or ignore guidelines to quarantine when you have been exposed, you are potentially taking the life of one of our citizens. Maybe you are prepared to take the gamble, but unfortunately, it’s not only to your detriment. You are endangering the lives of each of us,” Health Minister Nicholas Steele said in a radio and television broadcast on Sunday night.
Steele said that Grenada’s security was being compromised in a way that it has never been before by COVID-19, the coronavirus that is blamed for more than 18,000 deaths worldwide.
He said the curfew would remain in effect until April 6 and that “during this period, every person shall remain confined to their place of residence, inclusive of their yard space, to avoid contact outside of their household; except as provided in the Regulations or as may be authorised in writing by the Commissioner of Police.
“Lives are at stake. Your life is at stake. Your grandmother’s life is at stake. Your father’s life is under threat. My life and that of my family are under threat, and so is my neighbour’s. Whole families stand to be wiped out. From the halls of the palace to the seat of prime ministers, to the village slums, COVID-19 has shown that it respects no one,” Steele said.
Grenada has so far recorded nine cases of the virus and Steele told the nation that several people have not been complying with the regulations which were designed to convey the seriousness of the threat posed by the virus.
Pplice have so far arrested several pepple violating different sections of the regulations which on summary conviction is liable to a fine of EC $1000 dollar=US$0.37 cents) and to imprisonment for 12 months.
Steele said that the government is not in the business of gambling about the lives of Grenadians adding “everything else pales in comparison to the health and wellbeing of a nation. This is not about economics. It is about saving lives. It is about public health, public safety and public order.”