119th Covid death reported; 31 new cases identified out of 1,165
Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero announced the lifting of some public health emergency-related restrictions this week as Guam heads into the holiday season.
Although Covid-19 cases on Guam have been de-escalating in recent weeks, the islands remains in Pandemic Condition of Readiness 1, the governor said in her new executive order issued Monday.
Effective 8 a.m. tomorrow, Dec. 15, the limit on social gatherings will be raised to 10 persons. Religious ceremonies occurring indoors may operate at 50 percent of the facility’s occupancy. Retail may operate at 50 percent of the facility’s occupancy. And diners enjoying outdoor dining may sit at tables not to exceed 10 persons.
“While some may say the lifting of these restrictions is too conservative— far slower than what we’d all like— I am heeding the counsel of our experts and our federal partners, who warn that because Covid cases are surging a across the United States, emergency resources may not be there for everyone who needs them in the event of a third wave,” the governor said.
Guam’s Covid Area Risk score has gone down to 1.3, surpassing the “Strive for Five” target requisite for easing of restrictions.
“The CAR score takes into account our: incidence of new cases; how well our testing is able to identify these cases; and the rate of spread,” the governor said.
“With this goal in mind, our island came together and did what was necessary to slow the spread of Covid-19. Because of your actions, your dedication to keeping our community safe, we have well surpassed our goal.”
“As you all did your part, we also made sure to increase our own testing capabilities. Through the use of rapid antigen testing, we were able to increase our testing to an average of over 600 per day,” the governor said.
The decision to lift some restrictions was made after meeting with the Physicians Advisory Group and the State Surgeon Cell, the governor said.
The Joint Information Center today reported Guam’s 119th Covid-19-related fatality, which occurred on Dec. 9 around 5:22 a.m. The patient was a 44-year-old male with underlying conditions and expired at home. He was a known Covid-19 case.
Thirty-one new cases of Covid-19 were identified out of 1,165 tests performed by the Department of Public Health and Social Services on Sunday, Dec. 13, and tests from additional labs from Friday, Dec. 11 to Sunday, Dec. 13. One case was identified through contact tracing. Two cases reported recent travel history and were identified in quarantine.
To date, there have been a total of 7,137 officially reported cases of Covid-19 with 119 deaths, 526 cases in active isolation and 6,492 not in active isolation.
At the A.B. Won Pat International Airport Authority, two employees were confirmed Covid-19 positive.
“It appears that community spread is where most of our employees are contracting the Covid- 19 virus,” said John “JQ” M. Quinata, executive manager of the GIAA. “We have been advised of two additional employees testing positive for Covid-19 and have already undertaken sanitization and disinfection of their immediate workspaces and public areas for all airport users’ safety. Airport operations remain unaffected.”
He added that “From curb to cabin, we have implemented protective measures to safeguard all who work and travel through the Guam airport.”
