The Philip Goldson International Airport remains closed under the State of Emergency regulations- opened only to cargo flights and special charters to pick up stranded US residents.
But, the airport was briefly opened today for a special flight, to accommodate a French military jet bringing COVID sanitation supplies for the Belize Central Prison.
It's a donation from the CARICOM Implementation Agency for Crime and Security, also known as CARICOM IMPACS. This regional organization has partnered with the British High Commission in Port of Spain, Trinidad to ensure that prisons in the Caribbean don't become breeding grounds for the coronavirus.
7News was at the PGIA for the arrival of the donation this morning, and Daniel Ortiz has that story:
Shortly after midday, this French military aircraft arrived at the PGIA. But, this was no commercial travel flight. Those on board were military personnel who arrived with a donation of COVID supplies intended for the Belize Central Prison.
The CARICOM Implementation Agency for Crime and Security is seeking to reduce the risk of coronavirus outbreaks in the prisons of CARICOM member states. And so, they are providing personal protective equipment and sanitary supplies for the local prison authorities.
Captain Barbe Guillaume - French Air Force Pilot
"We flew here to Belize. Yesterday, we were in the Bahamas and Barbados. We picked up some freight in Barbados, some humanitarian freight. And we unloaded some parts in the Bahamas, Belize, and this evening to Panama."
Virgilio Murrillo - CEO, Belize Central Prison
"First of all, I wanted to start off by saying a huge thank you to CARICOM IMPACS, because with the assistance of the British High Commission, Port of Spain, and through funding from Britain's conflict, stability and security funds, they managed to put this package together, this donation of COVID supplies. It amounts to roughly $7,000 US, thereabout. It is a big blessing for the prison, and it will definitely bolster our preventative and mitigation systems that we have in place. What is being donated is a number of N-95 masks, a couple thousand disposable masks. There's liquid soap, hand sanitizers, and all the different COVID-19 supplies that are required to prevent and mitigate COVID-19."
A truck belonging to the Belize Central Prison drove right up to the loading ramp for the military jet, which was lowered to offload the donation's many boxes. The aircraft's crew was more than willing to help the prison trustees make the transfer process easier. The CEO of the Belize Central Prison expressed gratitude to the French Government for incurring the freight cost of this donation.
Virgilio Murrillo
"I cannot forget to thank the French Government for sponsoring the Freight of these COVID supplies to Belize from Trinidad. This is a French military aircraft that supplies for the Belize Central Prison. That is a humongous contribution."
And with that quick stop, the French aircraft was already prepared to fly out of Belize to make its next donation stop in Panama.
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