How coronavirus sneaked into Kiribati – one of last Covid-free places on the planet
- Kiribati, which previously held the disease at bay, has now imposed lockdowns to tackle infections after airline passengers introduced the virus from Fiji
- Experts fear the flight cluster that has grown to 181 cases will overwhelm the island nation’s fragile health system
Kiribati finally began reopening this month, allowing the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to charter a plane to bring home 54 of the island nation’s citizens.
Many of those aboard were missionaries who had left Kiribati before the border closure to spread the faith abroad for what is commonly known as the Mormon church.
Officials tested each returning passenger three times in nearby Fiji, required that they be vaccinated, and put them in quarantine with additional testing when they arrived home. It wasn’t enough.
It’s inevitable. It will get to every corner of the world
More than half the passengers tested positive for the virus, which has now slipped out into the community and prompted the government to declare a state of disaster. An initial 36 positive cases from the flight had ballooned to 181 by Friday.