News Update

Samoa declared a State of Emergency on Friday to deal with an epidemic, which so far has killed 16 people - many of them children. Yesterday the Samoan government reported a total of just over a thousand cases of measles.

Eighteen more vaccination nurses from New Zealand are arriving in Apia today to help which will bring the total number of New Zealand nurses working in Samoa to 30.

In Tonga, all government primary schools and kindergartens in have been closed until 25 November to try and minimise the measles outbreak. 

High schools are continuing to operate with the Ministry of Health launched a vaccination programme targeting students. There have been at least 177 suspected cases of measles in the country since an October outbreak was declared, most between 10 and 20 years.

Authorities have discovered 43 of the cases had a two-dose recorded history of vaccination, which was recommended for protection against the virus.

Dr. Reynold ‘Ofanoa - from the Public Health Division at Vaiola Hospital live update with John Pulu