Tonga’s main island under lockdown after first Covid case

Tonga’s main island that is located northeast of New Zealand recorded its first case of the coronavirus, prompting an immediate one-week lockdown, the government said.

The South Pacific nation that is home to 106,000 people identified its first virus case last week, after a traveller who arrived from New Zealand tested positive. He was isolated at a quarantining hotel.

Tonga’s Prime Minister Pohiva Tu’i’onetoa said the lockdown would begin just after midnight on Tuesday and apply only to the island of Tongatapu, where a majority of the population lives.

The nation’s Cabinet ordered the move to “ensure the safety and health of our people,” news website Matangi Tonga reported.

The lockdown will come with the closure of schools, bars and restaurants. Nighttime curfews, too, will be imposed. People will be required to isolate themselves at home unless they are buying groceries or medicine, getting medical help, or accessing banking services.

Hundreds of Tongans lined up outside at vaccinations sites as soon as the news of the infection broke. About 31% of Tongans are fully vaccinated and 48% have had at least one dose, according to research group Our World in Data.

The infected traveler was among 215 passengers who arrived on a flight from Christchurch on Wednesday.

Christchurch had been free from the virus for months until last week, when several community cases were reported.

New Zealand health officials said the traveler to Tonga was fully vaccinated with the Pfizer vaccine and had returned a negative test before leaving for Tonga.

Tonga is among the few remaining nations in the world that have avoided outbreaks of the virus due to its isolation.

Apart from Tonga, Fiji also avoided significant outbreaks until April, when the delta variant infected more than 50,000 people. The Delta killed more than 670 people.

Tonga’s frontline workers — including health staff, police officers and airport staff — who were on duty when the plane arrived had also been put into quarantine.

(With inputs from Associated Press)