The Greek General Secretariat for Civil Protection has reported that so the 18,264 tourists arriving at the International Airports of Kos, Mykonos, Rhodes and Santorini and the National Airport of Karpathos, only 5 have tested positive for COVID-19.
According to the news from ANA, two individuals at Rhodes, and one each at Kos, Mykonos, and Santorini airports tested positive for the coronavirus Greek officials are making every effort to contain.
After Greece’s opening up to international travelers, the nation has seen an uptick in the increasing numbers of coronavirus infections. The increase has caused a great deal of concern, and has prompted officials to tighten some controls.
Greek reporter has cited Stanford’s Dr. John Ioannidis saying that Greece needs even more aggressive COVID testing. Here’s his assertion in a quote from the GR interview:
“I have also stated multiple times since February that we should perform more aggressive testing and also include repeated epidemiologic surveillance assessments. Moreover, it is important to protect thoroughly (with draconian hygiene and hospital control measures plus recurrent testing of personnel during periods of suspected epidemic activity) our hospitals and nursing homes. Approximately 5-10% of the population are at high risk and we need to be extremely cautious with their exposures. Regular hygiene measures also continue to be valuable for everyone, regardless of low or high risk.”
Greece’s Deputy Minister of Civil Protection, Nikos Hardalias has already issued some figures on coronavirus testing from the first 19 days since Greece opened its borders to tourists from the EU and 18 non-EU countries. According to his figures 78% of the imported cases so far have come from Balkan countries, with Serbia leading the list. Other significant imported case have also come from Bulgaria (63), Romania (61), Albania (23) and the USA (6).
According to Athens officials, there are no plans for going back into a lockdown situation thus far. Greece has banned flights to and from Turkey, Albania, and North Macedonia until July 31, due to the Coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19). In addition, the entry ban for non-EU citizens has also been extended until July 31.