22nd April 2020

There have been some fierce thunderstorms and lots more flooding, last night there were torrential rains which killed 12 people and injured 18.  32 houses were destroyed and one road damaged.  The most affected area was Rulindo where I used to travel to visit schools.

Other reports include 28 people arrested for turning their shops and homes into bars during lockdown, and police have seized 4,400 banned non-biodegradable plastic bags from a ‘trafficker’.  This is not the first time I have heard of arrests for plastic bags – there are illegal in Rwanda because of the damage to the environment.

There have been over 1,000 tests carried out each day recently, and the number of new cases seems to be going down.  Today 1,038 tests were carried out, there are 3 new cases bringing the total to 153, but 84 recoveries.  There has been just one patient who has received oxygen as a precaution and most other cases are asymptomatic.

Deaths in the UK have gone down slightly and there is talk of opening up schools in possibly May or June.  Others warn of a second wave as there was during the 1918 pandemic.  It seems that no one really knows and it’s just a waiting game.  It feels like this here too, and I’m becoming more and more unsure as to whether I will stay the course or make an attempt to get home sooner.