NEOC Operation Bring Em Home

In the face of the global coronavirus pandemic, 183 passenger flights have arrived in the Cayman Islands between March and June 2020. They have brought almost 800 people home to the Cayman Islands and allowed over 2,600 people to leave our islands.

The initial demand was from students who were studying overseas and had been forced to return because their college or university had been closed at short notice. For others, they were escaping the chaos and confusion of countries whose health care systems were under strain from the Coronavirus pandemic. Some were returning from COVID-19 hotspots and had taken lengthy routes to connect with the air bridge from London. Many had a fear of bringing the virus back with them and infecting the community, family and relatives. A plan was needed to complete this undertaking, safely and efficiently, at pace.

This was in the fledgeling days of Government’s COVID-19 planning and preparation, and the “Bring ‘Em Home” operation was hatched from what was supposed to be a half-day planning exercise for the National Emergency Operations Centre (NEOC). A facilitated brainstorming session involving the combined expertise of around 50 people from across the civil service and partner organisations led to the drawing up of a workable plan, with both safety and efficiency in mind. Within hours, operation “Bring ‘Em Home” was approved by Cabinet and mere days later, the first Caymanians were being safely repatriated into the Cayman Islands, with the first isolation facility up and running.

The logistics involved were complex, given the civil service does not ordinarily run isolation facilities or hotels. Furthermore, there were challenges such as the need to match room availability to the number of people approved to travel together and complex arrangements to get them safely from their flight to their designated isolation facility where they would be looked after for a minimum of 14 days and then be tested.

Lois Kellyman, part of the Human Concerns cluster within the NEOC, was the first isolation facility manager and said she found the greatest challenge to be keeping the residents motivated throughout the isolation period.

She added: “We all know that students studying overseas look forward to returning home, sleeping in their own beds, visiting and catching up with family and friends and going to the beach. However, here they were, close to the beach but confined to their rooms and unable to have social interaction with friends and families for what seemed to be forever. As a result, we maintained constant communication with the residents, through WhatsApp and daily telephone ‘care’ calls. We decided to offer a “Taste of Cayman” as a treat for the students and provided mini Cassava cakes for each, sponsored by the Lions Club of Tropical Gardens."

By the end of 6 June, different hotel sites had been operationalised as isolation facilities and each has had its own challenges. One of the biggest tasks was to ensure the risk of exposure to staff was managed and that there was no possibility of the public accidentally coming into contact with those in isolation. Clear protocols around security and infection control required bespoke arrangements being put in place at each location, in line with advice from Health Services Authority, Public Health, the Department of Environmental Health and the newly formed Cayman Islands Regiment. Every flight was met by the NEOC ops team who co-ordinated with partner agencies and colleagues to ensure everything was in place to help both those leaving the country and facilitate those arriving and heading to isolation facilities.

Every inbound passenger had their temperature and travel history screened on arrival, by teams observing social distancing and wearing PPE. New arrivals were warmly welcomed home and on to awaiting buses for transportation to their hotel.

Some of the outbound flights came with an added requirement to screen passengers, as each country and airline had created their own set of procedures and protocols that had to be followed to ensure plans were executed without a hitch.

Graeme Jackson who was seconded from Portfolio of the Civil Service to NEOC Operations said “I remember some of the early flights, especially the returning students. We had parents who were upset about their children on one side of the airport and students who were exhausted and worried about their parents on the other. We were typically in the middle explaining to both sides why they could not see each other and that our focus was on keeping everyone safe. We did our best to reassure and console both sides. On one occasion we even found ourselves singing happy birthday to a student on behalf of the parents. In another, we set up a video call to reassure the parents that everything was fine. Everyone has gone the extra mile to support this operation and the teamwork across all departments and agencies has been incredible”.