97 yet to be tested
By REBECCA KUKU
HEALTH authorities are still trying to contact 97 people who had travelled with the man tested positive for coronavirus early this month, an official says.
The 45-old-man, who started his journey in Spain, arrived in the country on March 14 on a flight from Singapore. There were 77 other passengers and seven crew members on that flight.
He then caught a flight to Lae with 13 other passengers. The number of crew members on that flight has not been confirmed.
In Lae, he caught a bus with 16 people to the mining site where he was working. Fifteen of the 16 have since been tested negative. The 16th is believed to have run away to Chimbu without getting tested.
The positive-case man has since left the country for Australia.
Air Niugini sources said their employees had not been contacted.
Police Minister Bryan Kramer, representing Prime Minister James Marape, said last week the priority was to trace everyone who had come in contact with the man to establish whether Covid-19 had been transmitted.
“The positive case (man) came in on from Singapore on the 5.40am flight,” Kramer said.
“There were 84 people on the flight with him – 77 passengers and seven flight crew members.
“When the (man) arrived in Port Moresby, he walked from the international (arrival area) down to the domestic terminal where he boarded the PX 208 flight to Lae.”
He said there were 13 passengers on that flight.
“Six got off in Lae, six in Hoskins and one in Rabaul,” he said.
He said the man was working for the Harmony Gold Mining Company Ltd in Wau, Bulolo.
“When he got off the flight in Lae, he got on a bus to the mining site and was exposed to 16 people.”
He said the people on the two flights resided in 15 provinces.
He did not say how many had been contacted so far.
Yesterday, when The National asked Kramer for an update on the matter, he said any questions should be directed at Health and HIV/AIDS Minister Jelta Wong.
Wong could not be reached for comment yesterday.
He blocked the number of this reporter.
8 comments
Some time has passed since the reported case and the government still trying to track down those people who came close to that carrier? This is not good enough. The government should use all its powers and resources at its disposal to get those people tested asap!
Get the manifest of the flights and put out the names of the passengers on the fights for us to confirm their locations in the villages or towns to assist the Response team.
PNG is a small country is which some knows someone in all parts of the country.
The 16th person that sneaked off after travelling with the infected person in the bus to the mine site – his or her identity should be made known for public information. Was that person an active mine worker, how did he/she managed to escape from the mine site without being detected, and for what reason when he/she was supposed to be cleared first?
I think the government should extend SoE so that the 97 can be traced and tested. These people are a threat to the good eight million of this blessed nation. The extension of SoE can give Western province and West Sepik to really tighten up security stopping people crossing the border as there are 22 COVID 19 confirmed cases in two West Papua cities.
Get the manifest of the flight and the names of the passengers and flight crews, published their names on the National and Post Courier so that Papua New Guinea people can help track them down. There is already a hotline number exist for the people to call thus making it easy to locate them quickly. Its risky for us all that they are still roaming around in the community the longer they are in their community the probability of infecting people if they have the virus is high.
All 15 Peoples are presented themselves to tested and that Chimbu man or woman where is he hiding from search him and bring him to the Medical team for test he might get Covid-19 and run away.
Apile to all the Chimbuan’s checked that man or woman in all the Villages and Town and send him to the Medical team for the safety of our Province in case he might Sperade it if he infected by Covid-19 if not than… Thank God for his protection over us.
May God Bless You All!
Within these 14 days lock down period, we should monitor the travellers and carryout proper test and extend the periods of international and national flights for being Covid-19 free.
put the list of all names of this interested people. PNGans will find them and let you know.
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