Claire Caruana looks back at how the August calm was shattered by record numbers of coronavirus cases.

The sense of calm that normally washes over the islands in August as thousands enjoy their shutdown was this year marred by widespread concern as the coronavirus reared its head once again.

After weeks with few new COVID-19 cases being detected, the situation suddenly took a turn for the worse, with a record number of cases being registered throughout the month.

Before August, the highest number of new cases in a single day had been recorded on April 7, when 52 new patients tested positive.

But halfway through the summer, that record was smashed three times, with the all-time high (72) coming bang on the popular Santa Marija public holiday, August 15.

By then, large events had started to be cancelled as the authorities grappled to control clusters of cases emerging from mass gatherings.

At the end of July, the government had already been forced to put restrictions on mass events in the wake of criticism, after a hotel pool party was responsible for a new cluster.

But those measures did not seem to be enough to control the resurgence.

As social distancing rules continued to be flouted, the health authorities were forced to roll out fresh rules, shuttering clubs as well as bars that had no seating. The wearing of masks in all closed public spaces also became mandatory, while gatherings of more than 15 people were banned again.

On August 21, an ‘amber’ list of countries from which travellers need to produce a negative test result was unveiled.

Social distancing rules were flouted

That same day, it was learnt that a 72-year-old man had become Malta’s 10th COVID-19 victim. He died after contracting the virus from within the community on August 14.

Two other patients died on Saturday and Sunday, with two others in intensive care on ventilators.

However, as August approached its end, the number of new cases has started going down, with active cases in decline for several days in a row as more patients recovered. Authorities reported just 15 new COVID-19 cases on Sunday - the lowest daily tally since August 13. 

Despite the numbers being significantly higher than March, the health authorities say there is no need to declare another public health emergency.

They are in a better position to take decisions and the situation remains under control, they insist.

Calls for a lockdown have also been dismissed, though social distancing continues to be encouraged.

‘We had to act swiftly’

Looking back on what she described as one of the busiest months since the pandemic hit, public health superintendent Charmaine Gauci said August was a crucial month because important decisions had to be taken swiftly.

“The majority of clusters we were detecting were from places of entertainment so we had to identify the best measures to address the situation.”

Getting people to follow the rules had become more of a challenge, despite the number of cases being higher, she said. 

“No matter how much you tell people to avoid crowds and adhere to social distancing, they seemed not to be obeying. We had to take drastic measures.”

She recalled: “I must admit Santa Marija, the day we found 72 new cases, was the most difficult day for us.

“The number being so high and people being out and about, hundreds of people had to be contacted. It was a difficult day that definitely impacted all our teams.”

August: a timeline

August 9: Record number of new cases detected as 54 patients test positive.

August 13: New record of daily cases.

August 15: Highest-ever number: 72 people test positive overnight.

August 17: Health Minister Chris Fearne announces raft of restrictions. Doctors suspend action saying they are happy with them.

August 19: Restrictions come into force.

August 20: Doctors hold symbolic one-hour strike over the government’s handling of COVID-19, accusing the authorities of inconsistency after rules on bars appeared to be loosened.

August 20: Record number of swab tests – 3,030 – carried out in a day.

August 21: 72-year-old man becomes Malta’s tenth COVID-19 victim.

August 28: Active number of cases down to lowest figure since August 17.

August 29: Fearne announces Malta will be allocated 330,000 vaccine doses once available. An 86-year-old woman becomes the 11th COVID-19 patient to die.

August 30: 85-year-old man becomes 12th COVID-19 victim.