Kiribati hits more than 100 Covid cases

Covid-19 cases in Kiribati are now in triple-figures after cases on a flight from Fiji spread to the community.

There are now 116 cases on Kiribati - 36 imported and 80 community cases.

Kiribati was Covid-free until a week ago, but local journalist Rimon Rimon says it’s alarming how quickly that has changed.

“In just under a fortnight - nine days to be exact - we’ve jumped from one community transmission case to 80.”

“There are mixed feelings from people”, says PMN Kiribati producer Charles Enoka. “They’re not certain what the government’s going to do.”

The flight arrived on the 14th January. Kiribati went into a snap lockdown on the 22nd, with all businesses closed except for essential services, and curfew restrictions.

Enoka says community transmissions have spread to South Tarawa and Betio, with some places limiting domestic travel.

“Some of the outer islands have closed their border completely, there’s no passengers on the planes coming to the outer islands.”

But Rimon says it was too late for some islands.

“Sadly, there are nine new cases in one of the outer islands called Butaritari, which is about 180 kilometres north of the capital of Tarawa.”

Enoka’s 30 year old sister and her family are in isolation at the hospital, and says there are concerns over the availability of medicines, and access to health care, as frontline health workers are also becoming infected.

“Some families, they’re running out of medical supplies. As soon as Covid hit the country, people rushed to get Panadol.”

Kiribati had avoided the virus up to now, but Rimon says there are doubts over the current response, and whether the government was prepared

“Once the government opened up its borders and brought in its flights that's when things changed completely. The change was pretty sudden on the people and also the government and we can see on the ground the response is not as efficient as people would want it to be.”

There is speculation the current figures could actually be much higher that reported, as testing stations try to keep up with demand.

Watch the latest update on Kiribati with Rimon Rimon on Early Edition with Eteuate Ete: