Two new COVID-19 cases have been reported overnight, the Superintendent of Public Health Charmaine Gauci said at her daily COVID-19 bulletin on Monday.
The first case is of a Maltese man, 40, who appears to have been infected while at work. He reported symptoms on Sunday but had been in quarantine ever since his colleague was diagnosed.
The second case concerns another Maltese man, 68. He showed symptoms including chest discomfort on April 25. The man works as a volunteer.
That raises the total number of coronavirus cases so far to 450.
700 tests were carried out between Sunday and Monday. In all, 29,456 tests have been carried out.
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Four new recoveries
Gauci said that two children and two adults aged between 30 and 39 have recovered, raising the total recoveries to 286. There are 160 active cases.
On Sunday, for the first time since the outbreak began on March 7, no new cases were reported.
But Health Minister Chris Fearne warned that the virus was ‘still out there’ and one should not celebrate prematurely.
The highest number of new cases was reported on April 7 – a month after the first case – when 52 cases were detected.
Replying to questions on Monday, Gauci said random tests are being carried out at the Ħal Far open centre, which is under lockdown. 359 tests have been carried out there so far. 43 have tested positive but there have been no new cases there since April 20. A second 14-day quarantine period kicked off from then.
In her briefing, Gauci insisted on the need to observe social distancing and protecting the vulnerable.
"We have been urging people not to go outdoors, as there are people with the virus in the community. I'm worried about the elderly going out," Gauci said.
She said that despite being asymptomatic, people could still be carrying the virus and they could still infect others.
Thanks to the measures taken so far, however, only one patient has needed a ventilator.
Fewer people reporting symptoms
Gauci said that fewer people were reporting symptoms and requesting tests. She said symptoms were initially more related to respiratory issues. A rash was also a common symptom in viral illnesses, but it was not spotted in Malta.
Gauci skirted a question about the introduction of penalties for people who requested a test but then did not turn up.
Asked about a possible second wave of the virus, Gauci said the experts still did not know when or how big this second wave would be. It all depended on the extent to which people complied with the regulations, social distancing measures and monitoring by the health authorities.
It was now important more than ever to catch the virus early. She reiterated her call on employers to ensure employees with symptoms dit not turn up for work.