Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — Head of the Diocese of Samoa Pago Pago, Bishop Peter Brown says there was no damage to the church’s Fatuoaiga facility, which housed about 40 travelers from the 4th repatriation flight that arrived on May 12th.

Among the issues mentioned in a COVID-19 Task Force news release last week was that there were report of damage to property from Tradewinds Hotel and Fatuoaiga quarantine sites. It says that task force members were saddened to get a briefing during their meeting that a few rooms at the two quarantine sites were reported to have been damaged by travelers who came on the 4th repat flight. 

Damage reports included broken chairs, broken toilet seat and unsanitary items left in showers and rooms as well as damaged screens, louvers and clogged sinks. 

In a message posted to the Dioceses of Samoa Pago Pago Facebook page on May 28th, Bishop Brown said, “I wish to correct a recent report in the media that the Fatuoaiga Retreat Centre was damaged by people in the last malaga. This is not correct.”

“There was no damage and people were very appreciative and respectful of the opportunity to complete their quarantine,” Bishop Brown said. “The American Samoan Government has upgraded the facility to hotel standards. To prevent unnecessary concern I suggest media reports are fact checked.”

There has been no response from the task force concerning Bishop Brown’s message on Facebook.

The Fatuoaiga facility was used for quarantine due to the large number of travelers — 260-plus on the 4th repatriation flight. Those housed there were tested negative of COVID-19 and had been fully vaccinated prior to their arrival in the territory.

Only Tradewinds Hotel is being used for quarantine of the 212 passengers who arrived on yesterday’s 5th repatriation flight from Honolulu.

Samoa News received a call yesterday from a woman saying she was a passenger on the #5 repatriation flight and very upset. Apparently she said they were not told about the change of plans by the COVID-19 Task Force to quarantine all the passengers of the flight due to positive COVID case results of some of the passengers. Being fully vaccinated did not give you a bye.

A press release was received by Samoa News on Monday evening, may 31st — which we were then able to publish for our Tuesday, June 1st edition — the same day the flight arrived in the territory.

It announced that here would be “no immediate discharge of fully vaccinated passengers on the 5th repatriation flight that’s departing Honolulu and arriving on Tuesday, June 1st, 2021 as initially planned.

After further review of the discharge plan and the discovery of two new positive COVID-19 cases at the Hawaii quarantine site over the weekend, the COVID Task Force scrapped the idea of sending fully vaccinated passengers home.

The Task Force said, “They are called “breakthrough cases” which is the term to describe a small percentage of those that are fully vaccinated and still get COVID-19. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), breakthrough cases are expected because no vaccine is 100% but there is evidence that COVID-19 vaccines make the illness less severe for those that get the virus.

“The two breakthrough cases and two individuals who came in close contact with them have been referred to the Hawaii Department of Health and will not make the flight. At the meeting of the Task Force on Monday, May 31st, 2021, Chairman Lt. Governor Talauega Eleasalo Ale said the Task Force is not ready to do an immediate discharge of passengers upon arrival at the airport.”

Because of breakout cases, the DOH recommended that “for the safety and health reasons, all passengers must be quarantined for up to 7 days at the Tradewinds Hotel. This was supported by the Task Force.

Talauega, who is also the Governor’s Authorized Representative, told the Hawaii quarantine team led by DOH Director Motusa Tuileama Nua and Medicaid Director Sandra King-Young to make sure the passengers are made aware of the change as the fully vaccinated passengers traveling by themselves are expecting to be released upon arrival in American Samoa.

(Apparently, the woman did not get the message, or information about the change of plans of quarantine.)

With the added quarantine the territory, the total quarantine time the passengers will undergo is almost a month.

Talauega said while he feels for the passengers, the Task Force needs to be extra cautious considering the new COVID variants are affecting even fully vaccinated people.