PHILIPSBURG--Prime Minister Silveria Jacobs on Wednesday assured that the staffers currently working at a supermarket where one of the workers had COVID-19 symptoms had been checked by Collective Prevention Services (CPS) and were not displaying any flu-like symptoms or those of the highly infectious illness.
The Daily Herald understands that a symptomatic frontline worker at one supermarket has since tested positive and is currently not working while undergoing recovery, and there are consistent reports that this may also be the case at more than one supermarket.
Jacobs assured that CPS had conducted the necessary checks and together with the inspectorate will continue to assess not just the supermarket(s) in question, but all places that are allowed to be open. She said someone who had been working previously did have symptoms, but had not been back at the supermarket since.
National Alliance (NA) Member of Parliament (MP) Christophe Emmanuel questioned on Tuesday during a meeting of the Central Committee of Parliament why authorities had allowed “a business” to open where one worker had reportedly passed away and another reportedly had tested positive for COVID-19.
Emmanuel said information he gathered from a live stream indicated that there was an establishment where a person who had worked in the warehouse had passed away from COVID-19 and a cashier at the same establishment had tested positive and had shown symptoms, yet the establishment was allowed to remain open “and allowed people to shop.”
Jacobs said: “There has been quite some talk going on about someone being infected or persons being infected and working at supermarkets. As you know, supermarkets are only allowed to open if members or staff do not have any COVID-19 or flu-like symptoms.
“CPS, after hearing about this, did monitor the situation and did go to the mentioned supermarket and has been following up with those who are currently working at those establishments. So, when they went and checked it out, all employees had no flu-like symptoms that were working at the supermarkets.”
Jacobs said also that information she had received from CPS head Eva Lista-de Weever indicated that COVID-19 is spread from person to person when a person is coughing or sneezing. Persons can protect themselves by washing their hands often with soap and water, coughing into their elbow, not touching their face, and staying 1.5 to 2 meters away from other persons.
Persons with flu-like symptoms are asked to get in touch with CPS at tel. 914, she added.
