The Mariana Resort and Spa in Marpi will be the primary quarantine site in the CNMI, according to Governor\u2019s COVID-19 Task Force chair Warren Villagomez. <\/p>\n
Speaking at the Special Committee on Federal Assistance and Disaster Related Funding oversight hearing last July 28, Villagomez said they don\u2019t want to promote \u201ccross-infection\u201d with people who have tested positive and people who have tested negative, as well as the person under investigation, which is why Mariana Resort will be the primary quarantine site. <\/p>\n
\u201cMariana Resort will be our primary as soon as it\u2019s all settled and whatever spills over from Marianas Resort will be [at] Kanoa [Resort], because we don\u2019t want to promote cross-infection,\u201d said Villagomez. He added that the purpose of having two separate places is to separate positive COVID-19 cases from the rest.<\/p>\n
Rep. Tina Sablan (D-Saipan) pointed out that Mariana Resort was deemed not suitable for quarantine a couple of months ago due to many issues, so what has changed now and why has government and federal funding been used to overhaul Marianas Resort when Kanoa Resort isn\u2019t full?<\/p>\n
Patrick Guerrero, the governor\u2019s authorized representative, replied, \u201cI guess we learned along the way, in the last couple of months, maybe we can pull through and actually run the resort.\u201d <\/p>\n
He said that in order to run Mariana Resort, they are looking at executing a management contract to run some operations. \u201cWe\u2019re still actually looking at executing a management contract to run some operations but, as far as putting the facility\u2026up and running, I guess we\u2026don\u2019t need much more than what we put in the first couple of months to get it ready,\u201d said Guerrero. The resort has additional air-conditioning units and a fire sprinkler that passed fire inspection.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t have numbers to share with you, but I\u2019ve done the math over and over in my head, and we would be saving significant cost, if we run that facility,\u201d he added. He sees a 75% savings if the government rents another place for $100 per room per night.<\/p>\n
Guerrero added there wasn\u2019t much construction to do, just simple repairs such as fixing a few doors, plumbing, and air-conditioning units.<\/p>\n
As for medical equipment, Guerrero says that in the beginning they were expecting over 100 ventilators from the Strategic National Stockpile, but only got 25 portable ventilators that came in suitcases<\/p>\n
Based on the models of the Federal Emergency Management Agency and Johns Hopkins University that the number of projected cases that the CNMI was supposed to have, Guerrero said the CNMI needed over 200 ventilators.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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