Confirming 12 new cases of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) in the last 24 hours, St Lucia has officially passed the 500 caseload mark on Wednesday (January 13).

According to statistics from the Ministry of Health and Wellness, St Lucia has a national total of 502 confirmed cases, 177 of which are active.

The death toll has also risen to six on the Caribbean island, as the ministry confirmed the passing of a 52-year-old British citizen.

Despite the challenges, St Lucia has managed to keep the pandemic’s worst at bay, recording 312 recoveries to date. However, as cases began to spike into the new year, a decision to resume face-to-face schooling raised eyebrows island-wide.

Schools reopened as planned on January 11 and, since then, St Lucia has confirmed 64 new cases of the coronavirus.

Prime Minister Allen Chastanet, in an address to the nation on Monday, noted that he has always said St Lucia must “coexist with COVID”.

“From the time we have discovered COVID, the mantra of this country has been to coexist with COVID. What we have to do is learn to walk between the cracks, to be able to adjust,” the prime minister said.

“I am confident in our protocols [and] I want to reassure all parents and children that this government will always put you, your health and safety at the top of the pyramid,” he assured.

Chastanet further argued that St Lucia’s national response to the coronavirus pandemic doesn’t just rest on saving lives, but whole ways of life as well.

“As we have said nationally, this is about not only saving lives, but saving livelihoods; going to school is a livelihood. And when you think [of] the amount of time kids have had to be out of classrooms—and if in fact, the country has been successful enough in its protocols, that the CMO believes there is no imminent threat—then we should take advantage of the hard work we’ve put in,” he explained.