Nicosia schools temporarily closed as coronavirus measures stepped up

Schools across the Nicosia district will be temporarily shut, Health Minister Constantinos Ioannou announced on Tuesday.

"All schools in the Nicosia area, of all levels, public and private, will be affected by the temporary suspension of operation," Ioannou said, noting that schools in remote areas of the Nicosia district will not be affected.

Ioannou clarified that schools will be shut due to investigations on a suspected coronavirus case. The next moves will depend on developments, the Minister noted.

Additionally, all football Championship matches will be conducted without spectators, while all events expected to feature crowds of over 75 persons have also been postponed until the end of the month.

37 samples from contacts of confirmed coronavirus case test negative

By early Tuesday afternoon, 37 out of the 150 blood samples taken from persons in the Nicosia General Hospital who may have come in contact with the 64-year-old state doctor emerged negative, with the remaining results expected throughout the day.

According to the Institute of Neurology and Genetics, the majority of samples that have already been tested were from hospital nurses, and one from a patient.

Health Minister Constantinos Ioannou said the 150 samples had been taken on Monday, immediately after the head of Cardiac Surgery at Nicosia General Hospital, Chrysostomos Kokkinos, was diagnosed with the virus.

Ioannou stressed that the number of samples that will be taken is far higher than those sent for tests on Monday, as the 150 samples were only for people on the hospital grounds.

The Minister called on any persons who may have come into contact with the 64-year-old to place themselves in self-isolation and call 1420 so that blood samples may be sent for testing.

Simulation exercise at Famagusta General Hospital

At 2pm, a simulation exercise was conducted at the Famagusta General hospital for the handling of a coronavirus emergency, attended by the Director General of the Ministry of Health, Christina Yiannakis.

Kathimerini has learned that the Famagusta General Hospitla has been chosen as the hospital which will deal exclusively with COVID-19 cases in the event of a pandemic on the island, due to smaller room sizes allowing for a better management of an emergency situation.