Regional

VI CONSORTIUM US Virgin Islanders will join other territories and mainland Americans in receiving a second coronavirus-induced direct stimulus payment by year’s end as part of a $900 billion coronavirus relief package hastily making its way through Congress with consensus on both sides of the aisle. The measure is expected to pass both the House … Continued

An interventional nephrologist on St. Croix and an infectious disease physician on St. Thomas were among the clinical healthcare staff in the Virgin Islands to receive the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine recently authorized by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. According to the Department of Health, minutes after the vaccine shipment was delivered from the Department … Continued

Senator Novelle Francis on Wednesday wrote to Governor Albert Bryan urging him to declare a rent moratorium in the Virgin Islands to ensure that residents will not be evicted from their homes upon the December 31 expiration of an eviction ban implemented by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. According to a release issued … Continued

VI CONSORTIUM HAMILTON, Bermuda – Rena Lalgie, Bermuda’s first black and female governor, was sworn into office on Monday, December 14, 2020, during a closed ceremony at Government House. Lalgie, who arrived from Britain on Sunday, said, “It is a privilege to have begun my service as governor of Bermuda. My family and I look … Continued

Governor Albert Bryan during his coronavirus response update Monday said his administration has been considering a nighttime curfew in an effort to curtail the surging cases of Covid-19 in the USVI, a statement that comes as the Dept. of Health reported 179 active cases as of Monday, 87 of which have been reported on St. … Continued

VI CONSORTIUM – While many Caribbean islands have canceled their carnival activities for 2021, including the biggest of all, Trinidad; the U.S. Virgin Islands, whose carnival events happen in April, had not mentioned its plans. On Monday, however, Governor Albert Bryan confirmed to the Consortium that carnival activities will not be taking place next year … Continued

Grenada’s Ministry of Health says it’s taking “aggressive efforts” to contain an outbreak of Covid-19 cases connected to the Sandals Grenada all-inclusive resort. Keith Mitchell, prime minister of Grenada, in an address on Dec. 14 outlined several temporary measures to contain the spread of Covid-19 on the island. Effective Dec. 15, all social gatherings, including weddings and … Continued

VI CONSORTIUM A wave of Virgin Islanders who currently owe their landlords months of rent payments as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic will face eviction in January, the month when a sweeping order by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that halted through December 31 millions of residential renters from being evicted, comes … Continued

AP — A shark killed a 38-year-old female tourist in the French Caribbean territory of St. Martin on Thursday, shocking many in the eastern Caribbean region where experts say such attacks are extremely rare. Government spokesman Alain Rioual told The Associated Press that it was the first time in the territory’s recent history that a … Continued

VI CONSORTIUM The V.I. Department of Health on Wednesday night reported 35 new cases of Covid-19 in the territory, with St. Croix accounting for a plurality of infections at 73. St. Thomas accounted for 52 of the cases, while St. John had 41 actives as of Wednesday — representing the largest outbreak in the USVI … Continued