The volcano on the eastern Caribbean island of St. Vincent erupted Friday morning, forcing nearly 20,000 people there to leave their homes for the first time in more than 40 years and have to board cruise ships to resettle on nearby islands, where the island nation only accepts people who have been vaccinated, CBS News and other media reported Friday.
The New York Times reports that Ralph Gonsalves, the prime minister of the island nation of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, where St. Vincent is located, said Thursday that in order to board the cruise ships for evacuees, the evacuees would have to be vaccinated, and that nearby islands that plan to accept refugees have said they will only accept those who have been vaccinated. Gonsalves also said that it is to seek refuge in shelters on the island that vaccinations are also required. The islands that will accept evacuees include Antigua, St. Lucia, Grenada and Barbados.
However, a poster on Twitter noted that St. Vincent and the Grenadines has a total population of 110,000 and only about 10,000 people have been given the first dose of the vaccine.
Cruise line Royal Caribbean responded to The Gateway Pundit on Saturday regarding Prime Minister Gonçalves’ request for mandatory vaccines. Royal Caribbean said the policy was set by the St. Vincent government. Royal Caribbean’s policy is that evacuees do not need proof of vaccination to board the ship, and that these people will be tested for the CCP virus on board and given the vaccine so they can be accepted by neighboring island nations.
Royal Caribbean said, “Royal Caribbean did not make vaccination a requirement for St. Vincent evacuees to board the ship. It was St. Vincent’s government officials who offered to do their utmost to ensure that all persons boarding the ship would be tested and vaccinated so that they could be accepted for asylum in neighboring countries, and that was their initiative. So far, we have evacuated 137 residents to St. Lucia today. We stand ready to provide any additional assistance as the relief effort continues.”
The Gateway Pundit’s correspondent said it seemed rather cruel for RCC not to offer a 14-day quarantine option for evacuees who had not been vaccinated.
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