PARAMARIBO, Suriname (CMC) — Suriname Thursday announced a complete lockdown on Sundays and holidays until July 5, as the Dutch-speaking Caribbean Community country and other member states recorded deaths linked to the COVID-19 over the past 24 hours.

The number of COVID-19 deaths in Suriname has risen to 427 after nine people died from the virus, pushing the total for this month to 125.

The country recorded 283 new cases pushing the total number of positives here 19,108. The authorities said that 245 people have been admitted to hospitals and 34 people are in intensive care units, while 149 civilians have been cured in the past 24 hours, bringing the total to 14,572.

The Government said that the total lockdown during the week has been lifted and that from Friday, the full lockdown will only apply to Sundays and July 1, which is a holiday here.

It said that on the other days, the curfew goes into effect at 6.00 pm and runs until 6.00 am. Schools will remain close.

During the curfew, only the essential services and persons in possession of a dispensation or who have registered through the Ministry of Justice and Police may use the public road.

The authorities said that domestic flights are only allowed for cargo, repatriation of stranded passengers and for medical emergencies. Commercial domestic flights for regular passenger traffic are not allowed.

They said borders via land, water and air will remain closed to persons unless authorised by the COVID-19 Crisis Management Team for urgent reasons.

“The Minister of Foreign Affairs, International Business and International Cooperation will continue to discuss the manner of cooperation at the borders with neighbouring countries,” the statement said.