HAMILTON, Bermuda — The Bermuda government sent 9,000 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine to Trinidad and Tobago by private jet on Monday as confirmed cases of COVID-19 continued to fall here.
Trinidad and Tobago Foreign and CARICOM Affairs Minister, Dr. Amery Browne, (Second from left) and other officials accepting the shipment of vaccines from Bermuda at Piarco International Airport (Ministry of Foreign Affairs Photo)Health officials said the island recorded two coronavirus cases among the latest batch of 3,665 test results and Health Minister Kim Wilson said Bermuda had more AstraZeneca vaccine stockpiled than it was likely to use before the June 30 expiry date.
“We are seeking to assist our neighbors to the south by sharing doses that are in excess of our requirements. Bermuda does expect to use all our supply of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines.
“We are unable to share this as it has reached the maximum number of times it can be transported as recommended by the manufacturer<’ she added.
Premier David Burt said he was glad the British Overseas Territory was able to be of assistance to a Caribbean country.
“We must help where we can. I am glad Bermuda can play its part in the regional effort to stabilize the pandemic response. I have communicated with Prime Minister Dr (Keith) Rowley, and he has confirmed that this donation will be put to good use in support of their local vaccination program,” Burt said, adding “we are united in combating the pandemic, and it is a moral obligation to help those in need where we can.”
Forty-eight per cent of Bermuda’s population have so far been fully vaccinated against the virus.
One of the new infections came in on a Delta Air Lines flight from Atlanta last Thursday while the other was an on-island transmission with a known contact.
There have been 18 recoveries since the last update and there are now 57 active cases — down from a peak of 904 in April.
Two people are in hospital with one in intensive care.
In all, 32 people have died from the virus among the 2,490 confirmed cases recorded here so far.
Latest figures released by health authorities in Trinidad and Tobago show that over the past 24 hours, the country had recorded 15 new deaths and 250 new infections pushing the totals to 390 deaths and , 20, 257 positive cases since March last year respectively.
