WALLS BREACHED

Tonga, Which Held Off COVID for Two Years, Announces Lockdown After Volcano Aid Deliveries

Tonga was one of the last nations that had managed to shut out the virus.

Up until this week, Tonga was one of the last remaining countries that had managed to shut out the coronavirus. But the South Pacific nation has announced a lockdown after several cases of COVID-19 were recorded in the capital city Nuku’alofa. Tonga is still recovering from the catastrophic volcano eruption and subsequent tsunami last month that left it reliant on foreign aid deliveries of drinking water, food, and medicine. It’s not clear exactly how the virus came into Tonga, but two of the five identified cases were recorded in people who worked at a port where any aid deliveries were unloaded. Prime Minister Siaosi Sovaleni said the lockdown will begin Wednesday evening and be reviewed every 48 hours.