By Staff Writer
The next group of stranded travelers flying in from New Zealand lands at Faleolo International Airport tomorrow, Friday 12 June 2020.
On board the special flight are 145 passengers confirmed from the National Emergency Organisational Centre, NEOC, today, Thursday 10 June 202O.
The same strict processing measures of the last two weeks for the last group will apply at Faleolo International Airport for the new arrivals mid-afternoon.
The only change is in the transportation of the passengers to quarantine sites.
“ There will be no organised procession under police escorts like the last time,” head of NEOC, Ulu Bismarck Crawley, disclosed.
“The Government vans will still be there to take the new arrivals to quarantine sites, each with a health official to accompany them.”
Most will be isolated in hotels but others will be allowed home quarantine, with the final approval of the Ministry of Health.
The home option for new arrivals is subject to the site meeting health criteria and other factors.
Location and health security for the neighbours are among key requirements that will determine the approval of any home quarantine site by the health inspection team.
Neighbours consent of the selected home quarantine site is a must. Also considered along the same concerns are objections from the village traditional authority.
“We’ve had about 11 applications for home detention from New Zealand for some of the new arrivals.
“Health teams carryout the necessary checks to determine the safety of the site.”
Ulu admitted that bringing the stranded citizens and non-citizen residents home is hard work for a lot of people involved in the task force.
The transportation of the first group a fortnight ago became a spectacle travelling into Apia in a long convoy of white Government vans under police escort.
The arrangement this time will be different after a review of the whole operation on the arrival of the first group.
“Each van is assigned a quarantine site to take the new arrivals once they are cleared to leave the airport.
“The intention is to make them as comfortable as possible after a long tiring journey to get home and privacy is also part of that.”
The home option would help ease the hotel costs for Government after giving the first group a free14-day quarantine stay that ends tomorrow.
The new group will have to pay for their own dinner while Government covers breakfast, lunch and accommodation expenses.
The burden, however, falls on the health staff, stretched between watch duties at the hotels and more homes.
About 15 hotels were used as quarantine sites for the first group. Home isolation may reduce the paid accommodation sites.
Health teams will give final checks before issuing the final release approval to all who are under quarantine from the first group.