Smallest Canary Island Registers First Covid Case

The smallest island in the Canaries – officially becoming the eighth island in the archipelago in 2018 – has registered its first ever case of COVID-19 after a tourist tested positive.

The island of La Graciosa in the Spanish Canary Islands, formerly considered an islet of Lanzarote until two years ago, was the only area that has remained virus-free until now.

The first ever COVID-19 case in Spain was recorded in another Canary Island, La Gomera, on 31st January after a German tourist arrived with the virus.

According to the Islands’ health department, a female tourist from Catalonia tested positive while on holiday on the island of La Graciosa, but is not suffering from symptoms.

She arrived on the island this week and tested positive for a PCR test in the capital community of Caleta de Sebo, and has since been placed in isolation.

According to the local newspaper ABC, the tourist is quarantined in an apartment on the island while the authorities also attempt to trace anyone she has been in contact with.

A friend she is on holiday with will also be tested.

The Canary Islands authorities have warned about the possibility of a second wave after hotels on La Graciosa, El Hierro, and La Gomera were quickly booked up for the summer months of July and August.

The infected tourist and her friend reportedly visited the island of Lanzarote before arriving in La Graciosa.

The mayor of Teguise in La Graciosa said on Facebook: “To make sure the island is free of COVID-19, we have to carry out tests at all ports and airports in the Canary Islands.”

There are currently 11 active virus cases in the province of Lanzarote, including seven migrants who arrived on a small boat.

According to the latest figures from the Johns Hopkins University, Spain has registered 285,430 cases of COVID-19 and 28,443 related deaths.