THE United Kingdom (UK) has ordered its citizens to leave Zimbabwe in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak in the country, the Daily News can report.
Posting on its Twitter account, the UK embassy said citizens who are on temporary visits must go home immediately.
“If you are a UK short-term visitor to #Zimbabwe you are strongly advised to make plans to return to the UK now.
“Please get hold of your airline or tour operator promptly and follow @FCO travel for updates,” the UK embassy posted.
UK ambassador to Zimbabwe Melanie Robinson also said citizens must follow the directive.
“UK Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab has advised all UK travellers to return to the UK now.
“If you’re a UK national on holiday in #Zimbabwe the time to go home is now. Please get hold of your airline or tour operator promptly, and follow @FCO travel for updates.”
This comes after Zimbabwe recorded its first known death from coronavirus after broadcaster Zororo Makamba succumbed to the disease at Wilkins Hospital in Harare on Monday.
This comes as health workers have said hospitals are ill-equipped to deal with the disease while experts said the government needs to do more to avoid the spread of the disease.
Zimbabwe Association for Doctors for Human Rights (ZADHR) secretary-general Norman Matara recently said due to lack of personal protective clothing and equipment, doctors were not willing to risk their lives working on coronavirus cases.
“We are currently receiving very worrying information from some doctors and health care workers who are saying that if there is a case of coronavirus and they are called to attend to it, they will not report for work because there is no sufficient personal protective clothing and equipment to shield them from the virus.
“Currently, there is a shortage of personal protective clothing, for example, N95 masks as well as protective suits, which places the lives of doctors, particularly those in district and provincial hospitals, at risk,” Matara said.
The doctors’ claim was buttressed by the Makamba family who revealed stunning details exposing on how ill-prepared the government is on dealing with the deadly coronavirus.