Extreme isolation: World's last virus-free corners hold tight
A coronavirus-free tropical island nestled in the northern Pacific may seem the perfect destination to ride out a pandemic but residents on Palau say life at the moment is definately not idyllic.The microstate of 18,000 persons is among a dwindling number of places on Earth that still report zero cases of COVID-19 as figures mount daily elsewhere.
The disparate group also contains Samoa, Turkmenistan, North Korea and bases on the frozen continent of Antarctica. A dot in the ocean a huge selection of kilometers from its nearest neighbors, Palau is surrounded by the vast Pacific, which includes acted as a buffer against the virus.Along with strict travel restrictions, this seems to have kept infections at bay for several nations including Tonga, the Solomons Islands, the Marshall Islands and Micronesia.
But remoteness is not certain to stop the relentless march of the brand new disease. The Northern Mariana Islands confirmed its first cases over the weekend, followed by a suspected death on Monday.Klamiokl Tulop, a 28-year-old artist and single mum, is hopeful Palau can avoid the fate of Wuhan, New York or Madrid where better-resourced health services were overrun.
But she describes an evergrowing sense of dread, a fear that the virus is coming or could already be on the island undetected. "You can feel a rising tension and anxiety just shopping," she told AFP. "Stores are crowded a lot more during non-payday weeks."There were several scares on Palau, including a potential case that saw one individual placed into quarantine this week as authorities await test outcomes.
Inside Australia's four remote Antarctic research bases, around 90 persons have found themselves ensconced on the only virus-free continent because they watch their old home transform beyond recognition.There is no need for social distancing in the tundra.
"They're probably the only Australians right now that can have a huge dinner together or have the bar still open or the gym still open," Antarctic Division Operations manager Robb Clifton told AFP.The bases are actually isolated until November, so the group is safe, but Clifton admits "the crucial thing that's on the mind of expeditioners is how their loved kinds are going back."
Occasionally, reporting no cases will not always mean there are no cases to report.North Korea has portrayed emergency measures as an unqualified success in keeping COVID-19 out, despite sustained epidemics in neighbouring China and South Korea.
But state media also seems to have doctored images to give ordinary North Koreans face masks -- handing sceptics reason to trust the world's most secretive government may not be telling the complete truth. While Palau does not have any confirmed cases, it has still been gripped by the society-altering fears and monetary paralysis that have damaged all of those other world.
Supermarket aisles in the country's major town Koror have observed panic buying and there are shortages of hand sanitisers, masks and alcohol. The hawaiian islands depend heavily on goods being shipped or flown in, meaning supplies can quickly run low.
United Airlines used to fly six times a week from local Guam -- which includes seen a lot more than 50 cases -- however now there is merely one flight a week. "Look at how bad we coped when shipments were late before this pandemic happened," Tulop said. "Individuals were practically in uproar."
Residents have been practicing social distancing. Doctors are looking forward to test kits to reach from Taiwan. The government is building five isolation rooms which will be able to hold up to 14 patients. Everything feels like looking forward to the inevitable.
"I'd like to be optimistic we won't get the virus," Tulop said. "But Palau would most definitely obtain it. We rely heavily on tourism and almost all of us even need to travel for work."
Rondy Ronny's job is to host big tourist events, but work has recently dry out, and he admits to being "very anxious". "I've loans and bills and payments due," he said. "This will certainly put me back, I am hoping the government will do something about our economy too, to help it recover."
Palau's biggest test may yet include the first positive case. But even in the most remote corners of the world, the impact of the truly global pandemic has already been being felt. Nowhere, it seems, is truly virus-free.
