Aruba’s Horacio Oduber Hospital (HOH) let local media outlets know that journalists are not allowed to work on the premises without permission and guidance “to protect the privacy of patients.”
Four men ages 29, 53, 66 and 76 with COVID-19 symptoms were hospitalised up to Wednesday evening, but a fifth person having difficulty breathing was reportedly brought in later that night. The oldest one has meanwhile died of other complications, while the youngest is in intensive care. The total number of active cases up to Thursday at noon was 665, after 81 infections were added on Wednesday. Thirty-six per cent are ages 15-24, 30 per cent 25-34 and 16 per cent 35-40. The number of tests conducted on the island was reduced from last week’s average 1,000 to 500 per day. Of the positive cases 14 per cent have no symptoms, 61 per cent do and for 25 per cent this was yet to be determined. Aruba became the first Dutch Caribbean country that ordered coronavirus vaccines in development from the Netherlands for September 15, to cover at least 20 per cent of the population as advised by the Pan-American Health Organization (PAHO).
