The COVID-19 outbreak in the Marshall Islands prompts efforts to donate relief supplies

Until recently, the Marshall Islands had been largely spared from COVID-19 cases. Now the remote nation is grappling with its first significant outbreak, which started in the capital Majuro and has spread to at least eight of its outer islands.

In the past two and a half weeks, the number of confirmed coronavirus cases has risen to 14,250 with 15 deaths, according to the World Health Organization website. Efforts are being made in Hawaii to bring public health supplies to the Marshall Islands in response to the outbreak.

The Hospital Association of Hawaii is donating five pallets of supplies, including around 100,000 gloves and numerous boxes of protective suits. Deliveries are flown to the Marshall Islands free of charge by United Airlines. The donations are expected to help about 40,000 residents and healthcare workers, Marshall Islands consul general Isabela Silk said.

The Hawaiian Marshall community is also stepping in with additional personal protective equipment and supplies that will be shipped with the HAH donation, Silk said.

Earlier this month, Romaldo Kabua, a member of the Marshallese Community Organization of Hawaii, warned state senator Glenn Wakai about the outbreak. Wakai, who also serves as Hawaii’s Honorary Consul to Palau, has since coordinated fundraising efforts. He estimates shipments will arrive in the Marshall Islands sometime next week.

“When we were in the middle of the pandemic in February and March 2020 … we were just at the mercy of others for help,” Wakai said. “It seems natural that now…Hawaii is helping those who are where we were two years ago.”

On Friday, Wakai met with Silk, Kabua and others at a warehouse in Halawa where the posts are stored. Presenting conch lei to HAH officials, Kabua said, “On behalf of the Republic of Marshall Islands and MCOH (Marshallese Community Organization of Hawaii), I would like to thank you for your generous contribution at a time of need for the islands.”

Some Marshallese families in Hawaii have already sent supplies like masks and over-the-counter pain relievers like acetaminophen through local post offices, Silk said. “You couldn’t really find masks in the stores there,” she said, adding, “And if you did, it’s pretty expensive.”

The price of shipping supplies from Hawaii to the Marshall Islands is also high, Silk said, noting that her office shipped 10 boxes of PPE on Friday that cost nearly $700 in postage.

Further shipments will likely be shipped via ocean freight, said Jendrick Paul, executive director of MCOH. “The response from the community has been tremendous,” said Paul. “There are so many (donations) that we will put them on a pallet. Things like hand sanitizer that can’t be shipped by air.”

Paul said the local response was partially successful because many Marshallese in Hawaii still have family members in the Marshall Islands. MCOH has also heard from communities in Oregon, Los Angeles and Arizona that have plans to send donations, though it’s uncertain when those would arrive, Paul said.

According to Silk, as the number of COVID-19 cases begins to fall, there are increasing reports of flu-like symptoms in the outer islands, indicating the need for further vigilance.

Anyone wishing to donate PPE supplies may do so by dropping them off at the Marshall Islands Consul General’s Headquarters, 1888 Lusitana St. For more information on donations, contact the Marshallese Community Organization of Hawaii at 808-854-8744.

Linsey Dower deals with racial and cultural issues and is a corps member of Report for America, a national service organization that places journalists in local newsrooms to cover undercover issues and communities.