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CNMI positive total at 185
COVID-19 screening for boaters explained
The CNMI’s total number of COVID-19 cases went up by one to 185 yesterday after one additional person tested positive. The individual was identified through travel screening and confirmed diagnosis through testing on arrival on July 7.
According to a Commonwealth Healthcare Corp. press statement yesterday, the affected person has since been moved to a designated isolation area for close monitoring, and the CHCC Communicable Disease Investigation/Inspection team has already initiated contact tracing for the individual’s most immediate contacts, including passengers on the same flight.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s “COVID-19 Travel Recommendations by Destination” dashboard, Guam is at COVID-19 Level 2: Moderate. There are four levels in the CDC’s scale, with “Level 1” being “Low” and “Level 4” being “Very High.” The CNMI is at “Level 1.”
This comes as fishermen from Guam continue to arrive at the Smiling Cove Marina in preparation for the 37th Annual Saipan International Fishing Tournament this weekend. CHCC has assured that COVID-19 screening and safety protocols have been in full effect since this Wednesday for these arriving fishing aficionados.
As learned through CHCC spokesperson Guillermo Lifoifoi, all boaters and their crew have to undergo various screening processes before docking and entering Saipan.
Before setting sail for Saipan, each crewmember has to submit a health declaration form. Once a boat and its crew arrives at the Smiling Cove Marina’s transient dock, members of the CHCC Communicable Disease Investigation/ Inspection team will escort crew members to a tent where Saipan’s agencies responsible for COVID-19 response will conduct various screenings before giving boaters approval to dock elsewhere at Smiling Cove and enter Saipan.
The first step for a crewmember will be to have their health declaration form information verified with personnel from the COVID-19 Task Force. Once verified, the crewmember will proceed to a table manned by CHCC CDI personnel, who will verify a person’s vaccination records and establish contact tracing through gathering information such as their phone numbers, where the person will stay while on Saipan, who they will stay with, and other relevant information.
The final half of the process will involve going to a table where Department of Fire & Emergency Medical Services personnel will administer COVID-19 swab tests, and after being swabbed a crew member will proceed to an observation area to wait for 15-20 minutes for test results.
Throughout the process, as a boat’s crew is at the screening tent, personnel from the Division of Customs will be at the dock inspecting boats for any invasive species that might have made their way onto a vessel, such as brown tree snakes, and will also inspect for any kind of illegal paraphernalia.
