There are three new border cases of COVID-19. [File Photo]

There are three new border cases of COVID-19.

Permanent Secretary for Health and Medical Services Dr James Fong confirms two patients – a 32-year-old male and a 32-year-old female – arrived from New Delhi, India on December 21st.

A 34-year-old female who had travelled from England and arrived in Fiji from Hong Kong on December 21st.

All three tested positive during routine testing while in quarantine in Nadi.

Dr Fong says the new cases have been safely and hygienically transferred to the isolation ward at the Lautoka hospital according to the standard protocol for confirmed cases.

According to the Ministry they have all been asymptomatic and in good health since the transfer.

The frontline border and quarantine staff who were directly involved with the cases have followed infection prevention and control protocols, and will be monitored and tested as necessary.

A fourth individual who also arrived from Hong Kong on December 21ST, also tested positive during routine border quarantine testing.

However, 31-year-old male had already tested positive on two occasions prior to arriving in Fiji, during his travels in France and the United Kingdom from October to December.

He remains symptom free, and is considered a historical case that will not be counted as a case for Fiji, as he has already been counted as a case in another country.

It is known that non-infectious pieces of the virus can remain detectable, and cause a positive test result, long after the infection has passed; therefore it is unlikely that this person is currently infectious.

However, as a precaution, he has been transferred to the isolation ward at Lautoka hospital.

Fiji has had 49 cases since our first case was detected on March 19th 2020, with the last 31 cases detected in border quarantine.

It has now been 255 days since the last case was detected outside border quarantine.