The FEMA flight that arrived this afternoon to pick up the FEMA personnel who were assigned to the territory brought only one passenger, a US Army Sgt (not Air Force airman as reported earlier), who traveled from Alaska for his mother’s funeral.
However the son of American Samoa was refused entry and not allowed to disembark from the plane.
He sat on the aircraft the whole time it was parked here and never came out before the plane left.
We were referred to the Attorney General’s Office for information on why the he was barred from disembarking.
KHJ News was unable to get through to Attorney General Mitzie Jessop Taase by phone and an email requesting comment was not answered.
The office of Congresswoman Aumua Amata was involved in efforts to get the active duty soldier home for his mother’s funeral. His fiancé told KHJ News that other family members are in Seattle and could not travel to the territory because of the border closure and he was the only one that could could come home.
According to the fiance, the mother died in June and the family was awaiting the soldier’s arrival to schedule the funeral.
The return flight to Honolulu took six passengers: two FEMA reps, the soldier, and a US serviceman and his wife and child.
