WHEN ASILOMAR HOSTED QUARANTINED GUESTS
EDITOR’S NOTE: With the anniversary of Monterey County’s shelter-in-place order coming up Wednesday, we asked several of the area’s movers and shakers to reflect on how they felt when the order came down, what they thought we were in for and what surprised them in the ensuing months. This is the first in a series of articles on their reflections.
For more than a few officials, the local impact of COVID-19 came into focus a little over a week before Monterey County’s shelter-in-place order came down. The moment they realized local life was going to change drastically was when a small group of passengers from the COVID-19 stricken cruise ship Grand Princess was sent to Asilomar in Pacific Grove for quarantine.
Charles McKee
“When the first U.S. cases were announced on the West Coast, in Washington, that was an eye-opener,” said Monterey County Administrative Officer Charles McKee. “Then the rollercoaster began.
“In short order, California had its first case, we activated our county (emergency operations center), the state had its first death, the county declared a local emergency, we began testing for COVID-19.”
On March 9, the Grand Princess docked in Oakland. Testing had determined that many passengers had COVID-19 and more than 3,000 passengers needed to be quarantined.
“Things really sank in when the county was notified the state was sending cruise ship passengers who had tested positive and were being held in the Bay Area to Asilomar Conference Center,” McKee said. “Even though those passengers were isolated, not a danger and not our residents, they brought the reality of COVID home.”
Fatigue-clad U.S. Marshals patrolled the perimeter of a closed-off section of the Asilomar Hotel and Conference Grounds that week. Officials called a news conference to reassure the public and make it clear that the dozen or so passengers were there as a state-mandate.
Moe Ammar
Locals are well acquainted with cruise ships, with the Monterey Bay being a frequent stop. A visit by the cruise ship MS Amadea the first weekend in March 2020 caused concern among several worried its passengers were carrying the coronavirus. Another ocean liner, the Royal Princess, was due into Monterey Bay on March 31.
“My wife and I returned from a Princess Cruise trip to New Zealand and Australia on Jan. 16, 2020,” said Pacific Grove Chamber of Commerce President Moe Ammar. “We heard about the COVID-19 virus on the cruise. Both countries were on alert early on. I did not see it coming. I was worried about all the passengers from Pacific Grove that were on the cruise ship and the 600 staff members.
“When it hit, I was exceptionally worried about PG’s senior population — especially all the chamber volunteers.”
Ammar said at the time he heard from many local businesses that their traffic was down because of the news of the Asilomar quarantine. Several complained about not being adequately informed in a timely manner that would allow them to prepare. But others rallied to help.
“I was worried about the Princess Cruise passengers that ended up at Asilomar Conference Center in PG,” Ammar said. “We took care of them for 10 days during their visit. We delivered books, gifts and flowers to them.”
Mary Adams
One of those on the podium at the news conference reassuring the public about the use of Asilomar for quarantine was Monterey County Supervisor Mary Adams. Asilomar is in District 5, which Adams oversees.
“Looking back on it, I don’t think any of us saw a year of shelter in place coming, or of the loss and heartbreak, or the disruption and confusion that would ensue over that year,” said Adams. “Despite the confusion and mixed messages that circulated in the early days of the pandemic, I think we were still aware of how serious this pandemic was, of what was happening around the world, and we were alarmed at what we were hearing about how quickly it was spreading on the East Coast.
“In fact, District 5 was among the first to experience the pandemic locally when one of our hotels ‘hosted’ people from a cruise ship who needed to be quarantined for two weeks,” Adams said. “There was a bit of a public outcry of understandable fear, but things settled down and there were no incidents to cause alarm.”
By the end of the month, the state Office of Emergency Services began closing down Asilomar’s use as a quarantine site. The quarantined passengers were sent home. Tents and temporary fencing at the facility were taken down, packed up and shipped away.
In all, there had been 21 individuals housed at Asilomar who had shown mild symptoms for COVID-19.
“They left after the appropriate timeframe,” Adams said. “Without any fanfare.”