Male: National Emergency Operations Center (NEOC) has announced that more than 2,000 travelers left stranded in Male’ due to the lockdown on the capital have been taken to transit quarantine facilities where they will undergo mandatory quarantine before being allowed to return to their home islands.

The sudden lockdown on the capital had left thousands of travelers stranded in Male’ City, many of whom had travelled to the city for medical care.

In an address last week, President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih announced the authorities had identified 1,800 people who had compelling reasons to return to their home islands, and that they would be quarantined before May 24.

At a NEOC press briefing on Monday night, spokesperson Mabrouq Azeez said that total 2,053 stranded travelers had been moved to transit quarantine facilities, including 115 people who were moved on Monday itself.

“LGA has informed us it is also working on moving more people left stranded after travelling to Male’ on short-term visits,” said Mabrouq.

Seven tourist resorts have been repurposed as transit quarantine facilities, including resorts located in Addu City, Dh. Atoll, Lh. Atoll and R. Atoll.

Male’ is the epicenter of coronavirus outbreak in Maldives, accounting to over 1,300 of the 1,395 confirmed virus cases in Maldives.

In a bid to minimize the chances of outbreaks in other residential islands, the government decided that stranded travelers in the city must under 14 days of quarantine in designated facilities, and must be tested before they are allowed to return to their home islands.

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