NASSAU, BAHAMAS – The country’s fifth confirmed case of COVID-19 has been found in Grand Bahama.
Minister of Health Dr Duane Sands said the patient has no significant travel history, and aggressive contact tracing is underway.
Former Chief Medical Officer Dr Merceline Dahl-Regis confirmed the fifth case is a woman, who is now in isolation.
Dahl-Regis said the patient would have presented to a health facility with mild respiratory symptoms.
The woman reportedly later developed shortness of breath and was able to qualify for testing, she said.
Preliminary findings indicate the woman did not have any contact with the first case, she said.
The news comes as the first patient, a 61-year-old Bahamian woman, is discharged from hospital today.
The other three cases are being quarantined at home and do not require hospitalization, he said.
He said close to 200 people have been tested by the national lab.
It comes less than a week after officials reported the country’s fourth case on Friday, March 20.
At a Sunday press conference, Sands warned officials were concerned about a potential surge in cases despite the apparent lull in positive tests.
At that time, some 117 people had been tested by the national lab.
The country recorded its first case in New Providence on March 15. Two more cases were reported in New Providence on Wednesday, March 18.
According to the World Health Organization, there have been more than 40,000 new cases of the disease in the last 24 hours.
Yesterday, United Nations chief called for a global ceasefire to focus global efforts on the fight against the coronavirus pandemic.