The communities of Chevak and Hooper Bay are located very close to one another, and usually there is a fair amount of traffic between the two. But not now.
After the first confirmed case of COVID-19 in Bethel, Hooper Bay decided to close its doors to its neighbor. The Native Village of Hooper Bay had previously said that those wanting to travel in and out the of the community needed to ask for permission from the tribe. On Tuesday, April 7, the tribe voted to stop all tribal member travel requests in and out of Hooper Bay.
Residents were told to not call and ask for permission to visit Chevak. People from outside of the community were asked not to request permission to enter. In a release on Facebook, the Native Village of Hooper Bay said, “We are not putting our people or our neighboring people at risk!”