Tonga enters lockdown after first coronavirus case recorded

The Pacific nation ended its run as one of the last Covid-19 free places in the world after a man who arrived on a flight from New Zealand tested positive

Elsewhere, Japan confirmed plans to gradually ease Covid-19 border curbs and Australia’s biggest city Sydney will lift more curbs ahead of schedule

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A Tongan nurse preparing a shot of Pfizer vaccine inside Queen Salote Memorial Hall in Nuku'alofa in October. Photo: Matangi Tonga via AFP

Published: 6:30am, 2 Nov 2021Updated: 3:54pm, 2 Nov 2021

Tonga’s main island entered a week-long lockdown on Tuesday just days after recording its first case of Covid-19, ending the Pacific nation’s run as one of the last virus-free places in the world.

Prime Minister Pohiva Tuionetoa said the island of Tongatapu, which includes the capital Nuku’alofa, would remain in lockdown until next Tuesday.

Tuionetoa told reporters late Monday that the stay-at-home order was to “ensure the safety and health of our people … to prevent or minimise the spread of Covid-19 within the kingdom of Tonga”.

People queuing inside Queen Salote Memorial Hall in Nuku‘alofa, Tonga in October to be vaccinated against Covid-19. Photo: Matangi Tonga via AFP

Tonga’s first case was detected last week when a man who arrived on a repatriation flight from the New Zealand city of Christchurch tested positive.

The man, who was fully vaccinated, and another 214 people who were on the flight had been in isolation since landing and the health department said no community transmission had been found on the island.

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