Update March 12, 2020: As of March 11, 2020, President Trump made a sweeping ban of travel restrictions from Europe into the United States for non-citizens, excluding those from the United Kingdom. The Secretary of Defense furthered this action by stating that PCS orders would be halted from Italy and South Korea for the next 60 days, and there would be no movement of troops, their families, or DoD personnel from Level 3 Areas. For Level 2 Areas, family members of troops and civilians is denied for 60 days. This process begins Friday, March 13, 2020 at midnight EST. You can read more here.
As countries around the world start to enact quarantine processes and travel restrictions due to coronavirus, many military families are starting to feel the effects. Between in-home quarantine processes, schools being shut down, and even PCS orders being stalled you can find yourself wondering what to do if your military family is quarantined during PCS.
As of the writing of this article, two countries that house military families that have started quarantine processes are South Korea and Italy. The Army made a statement saying that service members of the 8th Army will not be able to leave or come back into South Korea until May 6th, at the earliest, and all PCS orders into and out of the country have been halted. This includes personal travel and traveling to or from the United States for professional military education courses shorter than 6 months, trainings, or other professional travel. The same announcement was made the day prior for those service members stationed in Italy.
South Korea already has seen 15 people affiliated with USFK with coronavirus, including an American soldier and his wife despite health checks at entry gates, travel restrictions, and a ban on extracurricular activities for service members. In Italy, one sailor has been reported as being infected with coronavirus at Naval Support Activity Naples. In Italy, schools in northern Italy have been closed and families have been asked to limit their outside activity as much as possible.
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Military families stationed in other countries are feeling the effects, too. In Bahrain, schools have been closed until March 24th, at the earliest. Those stationed in Washington state have also experienced school closures.
Here is the breakdown on the quarantines for military families in South Korea and in Italy:
South Korea
- PCS orders are halted for the next 60 days or longer for the 8th Army. Other services have not yet been affected.
- Non-essential travel and personal travel is banned
- Schools are closed until further notice
- Limited outdoor activity for service members and their families
- Travel for PME for the 8th Army is banned unless the PME course is 6 months or longer. If that is the case, the service member will leave two weeks early and be quarantined for those two weeks. Other services have not yet been affected
- Health screenings are being conducted at the gates
For more current and updated information on travel restrictions and base restrictions, follow the below official resources:
USFK Facebook Page
Italy
- PCS orders are halted until May 6th or until further notice. Some have noted that the official rotator has been canceled but some families are being booked on commercial flights in and out of the country
- Non-essential travel and personal travel has been banned
- Schools at Aviano Air Base and US Army Garrison Italy have been closed until further notice. Schools in Air Station Sigonella and Naval Air Support Naples are still open.
- Limited outdoor activity is requested but there is no ban on social activities in Naples or Sigonella. In Aviano and at US Army Garrison Italy, there has been a ban on social activities and restricted base access
For more current and updated information on travel restrictions and base restrictions, follow the below official resources:
Aviano Air Base Facebook Page
US Army Garrison Italy Facebook Page
US Naval Support Activity Naples Facebook Page
NAS Sigonella Facebook Page
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The Army has placed a special Travel Assistance Center hotline for those experiencing difficulty due in their HHG or other issues with PCSing due to quarantine:
What to Do if Your Military Family is Quarantined during PCS
Although quarantine for any person is uncomfortable, inconvenient, and frustrating it is imperative that the public understands that the best way to protect themselves and those who are most susceptible to COVID-19 is to enact proper hygiene and, possibly, self-quarantine. For military families, a quarantine during a PCS can be difficult to manage, especially if your household goods (HHG) have already been packed and shipped. Here are some resources and tips on what you can do if your military family is quarantined during a PCS:
If Your Military Family is Quarantined during PCS to and from South Korea
- If you are heading TO South Korea, and your orders have been halted, you can do a few things:
- If your HHGs have already been picked up, find your local loan locker, lending closet, or contact the MWR for your installation to help provide essentials for you and your family.
- Put in a request to your housing for an extension on checking out of your home.
- If you have checked out of housing or your date to check out is coming up and housing will not grant you an extension, contact the service member’s command to get temporary housing through base hotels or a certificate on non-availability to secure a hotel off-base.
- Contact the service member’s incoming command and outgoing command to see what the service member needs to do for intermittent working procedures, especially if they are in between commands (i.e., have checked out of their former command but have not yet checked into their new command).
- If you are heading FROM South Korea to the United States (or another duty station):
- If your HHGs have already been picked up, contact the Loan Locker at your base to get essentials for you and your family. Otherwise, you can contact the MWR, Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society, or Relocation Assistance to see if they have any resources available to you.
- Contact housing to get an extension on checking out of your housing.
- If you have checked out of housing, contact the service member’s command to get temporary housing through base hotels or a certificate on non-availability to secure a hotel off-base.
- Contact the service member’s incoming command and outgoing command to see what the service member needs to do for intermittent working procedures, especially if they are in between commands (i.e., have checked out of their former command but have not yet checked into their new command).
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If Your Military Family is Quarantined during PCS to and from Italy
- If you are heading TO Italy, and your orders have been halted, you can do a few things:
- If your HHGs have already been picked up, find your local loan locker, lending closet, or contact the MWR for your installation to help provide essentials for you and your family.
- Put in a request to your housing for an extension on checking out of your home.
- If you have checked out of housing or your date to check out is coming up and housing will not grant you an extension, contact the service member’s command to get temporary housing through base hotels or a certificate on non-availability to secure a hotel off-base.
- Contact the service member’s incoming command and outgoing command to see what the service member needs to do for intermittent working procedures, especially if they are in between commands (i.e., have checked out of their former command but have not yet checked into their new command).
- If you are heading FROM Italy to the United States (or another duty station):
- If your HHGs have already been picked up from Aviano Air Base, you can rent *some* essentials at the Outdoor Recreation Center behind the BX. Otherwise, you can contact the MWR or Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society to see if they have any resources available to you. NAS Sigonella does have a loan locker:
- Contact housing to get an extension on checking out of your housing.
- If you have checked out of housing, contact the service member’s command to get temporary housing through base hotels or a certificate on non-availability to secure a hotel off-base.
- Contact TMO to see if commercial flights are available for you and your family instead of using a military rotator.
- Contact the service member’s incoming command and outgoing command to see what the service member needs to do for intermittent working procedures, especially if they are in between commands (i.e., have checked out of their former command but have not yet checked into their new command).
Daily Mom Military is dedicated to finding resources and information to help military families as they navigate military life, including unexpected issues during their time in service. If you are currently stationed in South Korea or in Italy and are experiencing quarantine, travel bans, or PCS restrictions due to COVID-19, please comment below with any resources or tips you may have for other families. You can also email us here.
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