Marshall Islands Declares Health Disaster As COVID-19 Cases Skyrocket

A health disaster has been declared on the Marshall Islands after the COVID-19 variant omicron infected more than a tenth of residents in the capital Majuro in one week.

Since cases were confirmed on August 8, the numbers have skyrocketed to 2,800 in a city of 22,500.

Health Secretary Jack Niedenthal, on Monday, said, "We're gearing up for the hardest part of the outbreak right now in Majuro.

"Thanks to strict quarantine rules, the Marshalls Islands was one of the last countries to stay COVID-19-free.

"The good thing about having all these other countries go before us is we really understand epidemiologically how this variant of the virus spreads like wildfire."

The Marshalls' President David Kabua has signed a "State of Health Disaster" to give the government access to emergency funding.

The U.S.-based Centers for Disease Control and other agencies are set to send support teams this week to the country.

The tiny island country is home to about 60,000 people.