By Kevon Browne
St. Kitts and Nevis (WINN): As the Federation prepares to reopen its borders, authorities plan to step up inspections and to enforce compliance with COVID-19 regulations.
Police Superintendent Cromwell Henry is serving notice that businesses, tour, and taxi operators, educational institutions and all tourism-related operations will be properly inspected to ensure compliance
“There will be a strict regime of COVID-19 inspections and certification for all major sectors of our economy. Our hotels, taxi and tour operators, sea transportation and boating sector, tourism related sites, and educational institutions. All sectors will be required to satisfactorily show that they can safely operate in a manner that significantly minimizes risk to public health.”
St. Kitts and Nevis has recorded 19 confirmed cases of COVID-19 with 19 recoveries but officials are bracing for new cases when the borders re-open on October 31.
In Europe, countries that previously contained the virus are now seeing spikes and in the US officials are reporting a surge in infections in 20 states with a little over eight million confirmed cases of COVID-19 as at October 21 according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
Local officials have assured that a strict regime is in place to block the spread of the virus in the Federation and warned that success depends on everyone playing their part in observing and enforcing COVID-019
“The compliance team is also empowered to monitor all social events to ensure that these events. Have the necessary approvals from the Commissioner of Police and are complying with the terms and conditions of such approval. There is also some protection for the compliance team. The law provides: a person who obstructs any member of the National COVID Task Force or a member of the compliance team commits an offense and is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding $5000.”
The wearing of face masks is also mandatory in the Federation and a person found in public without one can be fined $500 in the first instance.
