Summary

Epidemiological Situation in French Guiana as of May 28, 2020, at 8:00 a.m.

Since early March, 405 cases of COVID-19 have been detected in French Guiana, including 184 cases in the past two weeks, with 48% in Saint-Georges, 21% in Camopi, 17% in Kourou, and 14% in Macouria and Cayenne Island.

Following a wave of cases imported from mainland France and the Antilles in March, rare instances of local transmission were observed in April—during the lockdown—with clusters, some of them large, in the Maroni region and in Cayenne, which have since been brought under control.

Since May, the epidemic has spread in Latin America, and imported cases from Brazil have increased. A large and complex family cluster was detected in Saint-Georges but has spread within the community, primarily affecting four neighborhoods in the city. Localized community transmission currently persists in St. Georges, though a recent slowdown in local transmission has been observed, thanks to the combined efforts of the population, its representatives, and numerous reinforcements mobilized as part of an intensive testing campaign.
On May 20, a cluster of three cases was identified in Camopi, and has now reached 40 cases involving residents and military personnel.

Other isolated cases or clusters have recently emerged in families on Cayenne Island and in Kourou.
The month of May was thus marked by sometimes significant transmission in eastern French Guiana, limited transmission in Kourou, and the rest of the coastline remaining largely unaffected, including western French Guiana and Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni.
To date, 20 patients are hospitalized in general wards, and two in intensive care.

Active case-finding and screening efforts in affected areas, combined with the isolation of individuals or, in some cases, entire geographic sectors, along with recommendations for cases to isolate in hotels or their homes, are continuing with the aim of breaking transmission chains and thereby limiting the health impact of the current crisis. Approximately 5,000 screening tests have been conducted in French Guiana since February, and targeted screening operations are regularly organized.

Surveillance data therefore show a limited but localized impact of COVID-19 in French Guiana, requiring high vigilance from all residents to further strengthen preventive measures and limit the spread of the virus within the territory as much as possible.