Staff of the Lethem Regional Hospital in the Rupununi are awaiting the results of COVID-19 tests conducted on a man who made frequent trips across the border from the town of Lethem to Brazil as recent as Friday.

Medical sources in the region noted that the man was diagnosed with malaria by officials at the Brazilian town of BonFim last week.However, his condition reportedly deteriorated and several days ago, he turned up at the Lethem hospital for treatment.He was placed in isolation while samples were taken from him and dispatched to the city for testing.

Reports are that the staff of the hospital who were treating the man, have been placed on quarantine.

According to reports in the Brazilian media, 1,202 cases of COVID-19 have been reported in the neighbouring state of Roraima and a total 18 deaths attributed to the virus, has been listed in that state.

Last week, Chief Medical Officer, Dr Shamdeo Persaud urged residents of the Region Nine to be vigilant in order to stem the spread of the Coronavirus.It has been reported that although emergency measures have been in effect , including a curfew and a lockdown on of the Takutu Bridge crossing, persons were still making their across the border via illegal river crossings.

“I want to draw your attention to Brazil which has 107, 780 cases with 7,321 deaths. For Guyana, this simply means that our bordering regions with Brazil are at additional risk of contracting the Coronavirus Disease, and so all residents, especially of Region 9, are asked to be extremely vigilant and comply with all control measures”, Dr Persaud noted last week.

Although Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro has downplayed the seriousness of the pandemic, the Portuguese-speaking country has recorded over 156,000 cases of the virus and more than 10,600 deaths attributed to COVID-19.