(Office of the Lt. Governor) — Lt. Gov. Arnold I. Palacios remains in the Intensive Care Unit of The Queen’s Healthcare Center in Honolulu, Hawai’i where he continues to undergo tests in the aftermath of his medical event at Guma Hustisia on Tuesday, May 31.
Lt. Gov. Palacios is in high spirits and feels much better this week. He wishes to thank everyone for the outpouring of support from the community that came in the form of thoughts, prayers and visits. He would also like to apologize to anyone who came to visit him but were unable to because of the limited access to patients in the ICU.
He also expressed his appreciation for the fast action taken by the emergency medical technicians from the Department of Fire and Emergency Medical Services who arrived in the courtroom moments after they received the call.
“I can never repay them. They were the first responders and they got me out of there in no time and put me in a better situation,” he said.
Palacios also thanked Governor Ralph Deleon Guerrero Torres for personally coordinating with the Department of Defense for the lt. governor’s safe transport to Hawai’i.
“I want to thank him for working things out with the Department of the Air Force to have that C117 ready to take off the next day. I wasn’t aware how quickly things came together in the early evening to evacuate me off-island,” Palacios said.
“Our community is a small community and we set aside these major sometimes dramatic differences when the need arises. We’re decent people, God-fearing people and we look out for each other under any circumstances,” he added.
He likewise expressed his appreciation for the Commonwealth Healthcare Corporation medical team, the staff with the CNMI Medical Referral Program in Saipan and Honolulu, the Department of Defense, the flight crew that assisted him from Saipan to Hawai’i, his friends and family, and most especially his wife, Wella.
His office will continue to provide updates as they become available.
