Opening SXM Airport for US flights continues as scheduled August 1
GREAT BAY — The Princess Juliana International Airport’s opening will continue as scheduled for August 1, despite the concerns by the government representatives on the French side of the island. Minister responsible for Tourism, Ludmila De Weever, confirmed at the Council of Ministers Press Briefing that there would be a reduced schedule of flights from the United States to St. Maarten.
She said that Delta Airlines had reduced its schedule flights to three times per week. Jet Blue Airlines has reduced its flights to once per week out of New York, American Airlines one flight per week from Charlotte North Carolina, and five flights from Florida. She noted that site inspections had been carried out at restaurants. The establishments have everything in place to follow the guidelines set down, and the protocols are in place.
She mentioned that site inspections had been done at all the hotels and lodgings. They are currently carrying the training for the taxi drivers at the airport and the harbor. The training included COVID-19 training and a review of customer service training.
She pointed out that her ministry is looking forward to welcoming the visitors to the island in a very safe manner and calling on residents to continue with the health guidelines set by the Ministry of Public Health. She also noted that there are now stricter guidelines that have been introduced by the Health Ministry so that St. Maarten is more in line with the French part of the island.
Prime Minister Silveria Jacobs said that in a meeting with the Prefet, she would be implementing border controls because she is concerned about the rising number of COVID-19 cases on Dutch St. Maarten. The Prime Minister pointed out that the French Side now has eight confirmed cases and will be carrying out more random testing as of Thursday.
She has advised the Prefet Deleguee Sylvie Feucher that several persons from the communities have been reporting symptoms for the last two weeks. As a result, they were to give accurate numbers. She advises the residents of the Dutch side of the islands that their movement to the French side will be limited significantly as of Friday at noon.
She mentioned that the health authorities on the Dutch side of the island put additional checks in place for all the inbound passengers from the United States. The Prime Minister stressed that there is no increase in the COVID-19 cases amongst the visitors.
