COVID-19 Related Curfew In St. Kitts And Nevis To Be Lifted Shortly, Says Abdias Samuel

Basseterre, St. Kitts, November 18, 2021 (SKNIS): The Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis is lifting the curfew mandate that was first introduced in March 2020 to help curb the spread of COVID-19.

“The Task Force would have made a recommendation to have the curfew lifted and I am pleased to inform you that Cabinet has approved for the full lifting of the curfew from the Regulations,” said Abdias Samuel, Chair of the COVID-19 National Task Force, at the NEOC COVID-19 Press Briefing for November 17. “So when you see the new iterations of the Regulations there will be no more curfew in St. Kitts and Nevis.”

COVID-19 was introduced into the Federation in late March of 2020. This prompted the Government of St. Kitts and Nevis to intensify protective measures which included the declaration of a State of Emergency under which all citizens and residents were subjected to 24-hour curfews and hours of limited operations on selected days for the first fourteen (14) days.

Various iterations of the curfew remained in place. The last Saint Christopher and Nevis Statutory Rules and Orders No. 40 of 2021 – Emergency Powers (COVID-19) (No.12) Regulations, listed the curfew hours as 1:01 a.m. to 5:00 a.m. daily from Friday, November 05 to Thursday, November 18.

During the period of curfew, everyone was required to remain confined to his or her place of residence, inclusive of his or her yard space to avoid contact outside of the family. In other words, only the security forces and other security personnel, health care officers, technical emergency officers of utilities including telecoms, and media personnel were allowed out of their residences to perform their relevant duties.