SAINT LUCIA — Cuban Ambassador to Saint Lucia, His Excellency Alejandro Simancas Marin, was on hand to welcome a delegation of 113 medical professionals from Cuba as they checked in to Sandals Regency La Toc Golf Resort & Spa in Castries, The Saint Lucia Times reported on March 30.
He was joined by Sandals Saint Lucia Managing Director Winston Anderson and General Manager of Sandals Regency La Toc Gaurav Sindhi, to greet the doctors, bio-engineers and nurses who make up the group.
Sandals Regency a Toc Golf Resort & Spa is currently closed to guests, as are all Sandals Resorts throughout the Caribbean, as a result of the global disruption brought about by the coronavirus, and the Managing Director Winston Anderson said the company had no hesitation in donating the accommodation for the medical team, which is here to lend support to Saint Lucia’s ongoing effort to strengthen the health system amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
“These are unprecedented times,” Anderson said. “We must all pull together as one country and one region to assist in whatever way we can in the fight against this very serious virus and our company is happy to be in a position to help by donating 150 rooms to be used by the Cuban medical delegation and supporting local personnel, as they in turn provide vital support to Saint Lucia.”
The Cuban Ambassador thanked the Sandals group for their assistance, which he says will go a long way in helping the medical team as they go about their duties in Saint Lucia which include assisting in the setting up of quarantine and respiratory hospital facilities.
Chairman of Sandals Resorts the Hon. Gordon ‘Butch’ Stewart noted that the company has been an integral part of Saint Lucia since 1992 (28 years) adding, “Our hearts go out to the people of Saint Lucia, in particular those that have lost their jobs in these very difficult times, as well as those people who are experiencing hardships. It is and has always been our pleasure to support and work alongside the beautiful people of Saint Lucia, and we will continue to do so.”
Sandals has also made its Carlisle Inn, a 52-room hotel in Montego Bay, available to the government of Jamaica to use as an incubation center, as they cope with the coronavirus outbreak in that country. The company was responding to an urgent call from health officials in Jamaica for assistance, including in the form of accommodation for patients recovering from COVID-19.
Commenting on the support being given to the authorities in Jamaica, Sandals Deputy Chairman Adam Stewart said, “This is a crisis like we have never seen before. Our position is that we are all in this together as tourism stakeholders, and as citizens of Saint Lucia, Jamaica and the world-at-large.”
