SABA--Saba will not open its borders to St. Maarten for visitors and leisure travel, Island Governor Jonathan Johnson said early Thursday evening.
While some measures in combating the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic and some “small risks” have been introduced, such as lifting the social-distancing measures on the island, and an agreement has been closed with Health Insurance Office ZVK for the treatment of Saba patients in St. Maarten, “we have to be careful not to go too far too fast,” Johnson said.
“Doing so not only puts us as an island at risk, but also our limited medical facilities. Therefore, we have made the decision to not open to St. Maarten for visitors and leisure travel. We do this in order to protect those on our island,” he said.
The public entity Saba will continue to review the situation as developments occur.
“As we have seen in the past few days, changes can and will happen. We will, therefore, assess travel possibilities on a regular basis,” Johnson said.
“The summer is here and while schools are going on break or holidays, we as a community have been isolated on the island for months. I know that we all can definitely use a break. Unfortunately, we are still facing the COVID-19 pandemic and, as we can see what is transpiring around the world, it is nowhere near over yet. As a small island with an inter-connected community we are in a very vulnerable position.”
There are currently no active cases of COVID-19 in Saba, with eight tests pending, according to figures provided by the public entity Saba on Wednesday, July 1.
