JIC RELEASE NO. 419 - 76th COVID-19 Fatality Reported; 11 DOC Employees Test Positive for COVID-19;One GRTA Employee Tests Positive For COVID-19 - GHS OCD

For information on COVID-19 cases, visit the official COVID-19 Situation Report and Dashboard at http://dphss.guam.gov/covid-19/.

76th COVID-19 Fatality Reported
The Joint Information Center was notified that Guam’s 76th COVID-19-related fatality occurred at the Guam Memorial Hospital (GMH) at approximately 12:26 p.m. The patient was a 41-year-old male with underlying health conditions complicated by COVID-19. He was admitted to GMH on October 5 and tested positive upon admission.

“To his family and friends, please accept our deepest condolences and sympathies. I hope you find comfort with the knowledge you have the support of our entire island community,” said Governor Lou Leon Guerrero. “Because of the nature of a pandemic, our individual actions do not just affect ourselves—they affect those around us. We cannot become complacent, and we must accept that we all have a responsibility to ensure the health and safety of Guam.”

The Guam Behavioral Health and Wellness Center (GBHWC) has a Crisis Hotline that is available 24/7 at (671) 647-8833/4. For those feeling anxious, stressed, overwhelmed or are needing to talk to someone, GBHWC has experienced providers available and ready to assist the community with any heightened stress and anxiety experienced as a result of COVID-19.

11 DOC Employees Test Positive for COVID-19
The Department of Corrections (DOC) has been notified that five recruits and six officers assigned to DOC’s Adult Correctional Facility in Mangilao have tested positive for COVID-19. Some of the infected officers were off-duty and reported experiencing flu-like symptoms, while other officers who were on duty and reported feeling ill were immediately secured from duty.

Through DOC’s internal contact tracing efforts, 19 officers were ordered to quarantine at home for 14 days and were instructed to seek medical attention upon the onset of any signs of illness. As a further result of these efforts, 20 inmates and 10 officers who were identified as close contacts were also tested by the DOC medical clinic and received negative results.

At this time, there are no reported cases of COVID-19 within DOC’s inmate population.

One GRTA Employee Tests Positive For COVID-19
On October 28, 2020, the Guam Regional Transit Authority (GRTA) was notified that an employee of the authority had tested positive for COVID-19. At this time, GRTA paratransit and fixed route operations are unaffected and will continue normal operations. GRTA continues to perform mitigation measures which include:

Sanitization of buses and vans twice daily – in the afternoon and evening in preparation for morning operations
Enforced social distancing
Providing hand sanitizing wipes to riders
Ensuring all riders wear face masks while on board
Providing faces masks to riders who don’t have one

For additional information, or inquiries on GRTA’s services, the public is advised to contact

475-4686
686-7433
888-7433
647-7433

For the latest information on COVID-19, visit dphss.guam.gov or guamrecovery.com. For inquiries on COVID-19, contact 311 through a local number, or call the Joint Information Center at (671) 478-0208/09/10.

X Flooding is a temporary overflowing of water onto land that is normally dry. Flooding may happen with only a few inches of water, or it may cover a house to the rooftop. There are many possible causes of floods including heavy rain, coastal storms and storm surge, waterway overflow from being blocked with debris, or overflow of levees, dams, or waste water systems. Flooding can occur slowly over many days or happen very quickly with little or no warning, called flash floods.

To learn more, visit https://www.ready.gov/floods

Wildfire

Regularly clean the roof and gutters.
Maintain an area approximately 30’ away from you home that is free of anything that will burn, such as wood piles, dried leaves, newspapers and other brush.
Connect garden hoses long enough to reach any area of the home and fill garbage cans, tubs, or other large containers with water.
Review your homeowner's insurance policy and also prepare/update a list of your home's contents.

Fire Weather

Turn on your TV/radio. You’ll get the latest weather updates and emergency instructions.
Know where to go. If you are ordered to evacuate, know the route to take and have plan of where you will go. Check-in with your friends and family.
Keep your car fueled, in good condition, and stocked with emergency supplies and a change of clothes.

Drought

Conserve water

Take shorter showers.

Turn off the water while brushing your teeth or shaving.
Run the washer less frequently and only when you have a full load.
Water your lawn less frequently and do so when the temperature is cooler in the early morning or late evening.
When you run the tap to heat or cool water, keep a pitcher to store the water and use it to water plants.
Avoid washing your car.

Practice fire prevention

Don't set off fireworks when conditions are dry.
Deposit cigarette butts in the proper receptacle to avoid starting a
Pour water over camp fires and backyard fire pits to ensure they are completely out before leaving them unattended.

Follow directions from local officials. If there are restrictions on water usage, be sure to heed them.

To learn more, visit https://www.ready.gov/wildfires and https://www.ready.gov/drought

X
Typhoons/Hurricanes are massive storm systems that form over the water and move toward land. Threats from typhoons/hurricanes include high winds, heavy rainfall, storm surge, coastal and inland flooding, and rip currents.

“Hurricanes” form in the Atlantic Northeast Pacific region and “Typhoons” form in the Northwest Pacific Region. These large storms are call cyclones in other parts of the world.

To learn more, visit https://www.ready.gov/hurricanes.

JIC RELEASE NO. 419 - 76th COVID-19 Fatality Reported; 11 DOC Employees Test Positive for COVID-19;One GRTA Employee Tests Positive For COVID-19