COVID-19 Arrives In Grímsey

The coronavirus has made its way to Grímsey—a small island located 40 kilometres off the northern coast of Iceland—for the first time last week, when two people tested positive for the virus.

After the 40 to 50 people who live on the island were screened, three more cases were found. While the infections seem to be confined to two households, nearly the entire population of the small island went into quarantine, reports RÚV.

During that time, the store and restaurant were closed. Now with results from the COVID testing, they are open again in accordance with government restrictions.

A doctor visits the island from Akureyri every three weeks, and recently supplied booster doses to residents who received the Janssen vaccine. Karen Nótt Halldórsdóttir of the Grímsey district council told mbl.is she hopes the full vaccination of the island is a benefit in their current situation.

All things considered, Karen Nótt believes it’s amazing the island made it so far into the pandemic without an infection. She suggests a rise in tourists to Grímsey this summer could have contributed to cases appearing on the island.

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