The Corn Piece community in Clarendon has been placed under quarantine as part of efforts by the state to contain the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

Prime Minister Andrew Holness announced the 14-day quarantine in Parliament Thursday evening.

This is the second community to be placed under quarantine with the first being Bull Bay in St Andrew. Corn Piece is the community where the elderly man who died Wednesday from complications associated with the virus resided.

Holness said the quarantine is to facilitate investigations by health authorities in the community. He said health officials have had difficulty conducting their probe due to resistance from persons—including family members of the deceased—who may have been exposed to the virus.

“I’m appealing to all

Jamaicans…we are not taking away your liberty, but this is for your own benefit,”

Holness said.

Soldiers and police officers will be deployed to Corn Piece to prevent the movement of residents as health officials conduct their probe within the community to determine how much, if at all, the virus has spread within the area.