Now, before that statement was made, we went out to the Albert Street to see how the commercial centre of the biggest city was doing after the news of a COVID-19 case confirmed in the city.
We saw that even without a state of emergency, things are already slowing down significantly:
Cherisse Halsall reporting
This was downtown Belize City midday today a few hours after the announcement of Belize City's first confirmed case of COVID-19 and just a few hours before the Prime Minister's official statement on that development.
Street traffic was a sparse but essential services like the city bus were still in operation. Still, the majority of Albert street's stores are closed
And during what would normally be rush hour, fewer and fewer people were on the streets
Our cameras spotted police enforcing the new social distancing regulations, even for people lining up for food.
And it's no wonder because the homeless and those living in poverty are one of the most vulnerable populations to community spread of the looming COVID-19 Pandemic.
On a regular weekday, this part of downtown Belize City would be filled with bumper to bumper gridlock, but now it's just a stray bicycle, some birds, and the occasional vehicle.
At that point all we could do was wait, hope, and watch. But this evening we are 48 hours away from a nationwide State of Emergency and that reality is likely to transform our downtown like many others worldwide into a ghost town.
Email
Print