COVID hits one of the last uninfected places on the planet

By NICK PERRY and SAM METZ
Associated Press

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Kiribati and several other small Pacific nations were among the last on the planet to have avoided any virus outbreaks, thanks to their remote locations and strict border controls. But their defenses appear no match against the highly contagious omicron variant. Kiribati finally began reopening this month, agreeing to allow the U.S.-based Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to charter a plane to bring home 54 citizens. Many had left before the border closure to serve missions abroad for what’s widely known as the Mormon church. Officials tested each returning passenger three times in nearby Fiji, required they be vaccinated, and put them in quarantine with additional testing when they arrived home. It wasn’t enough.