American family fights to come home after getting stranded in Peru during COVID-19 border closures
Carmen Sinigiani, Joey Sinigiani talk about being stuck in Peru during the coronavirus pandemic.
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An American family is calling on President Trump for aid after they were stranded in Peru during coronavirus-related (COVID-19) border closures.
Appearing on "Fox & Friends First" with host Rob Schmitt and Jillian Mele, California native Carmen Sinigiani and her son Joey Sinigiani said that they have felt increasingly unsafe in the city of Cuzco since the shutdown.
"Peru has mandated that everybody within its borders are quarantined in place," Carmen explained. "They are enforcing it with military and police on the streets."
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"The other day my husband and I went out to go get groceries. We understood we were permitted to do that. And, we were stopped by five police officers who ordered me back home. And then, my husband walked me home and then went out to get groceries on his own," she continued.
Singiani's husband is a Santa Rosa, Calif., police officer.
The Singianis are not the only U.S. citizens stranded in the South American country. According to a Google Document being sent around, there are at least 934 Americans stuck in the country -- including Dan West and Jonathan Du. Some Americans have been able to leave since the state of emergency order was put in place, but most remain in limbo.
Last week, President Trump promised that the U.S. military would take action to help bring them home.
On Sunday, the U.S. Embassy in Lima issued a statement on the situation for stranded travelers.
“The U.S. Embassy in Lima is operating and is coordinating closely with the Peruvian Government on all options for U.S. citizens to depart the country and are arranging charter aircraft,” officials said. “To date, approximately 500 American tourists departed Peru this weekend and included some of the most urgent medical cases. The U.S. Embassy will continue messaging as additional flight plans are finalized.”
"Well, we all know that things are different now," Carmen said. "But, 13 days ago, when we had decided to come here, by all accounts Peru was safe. We were in close contact with our tour guides who had encouraged us to come. When we arrived travel was smooth and everything in Cuzco was business as usual."
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"The shutdown, as we understand it, even came as a surprise to the locals. They had no idea it was coming," she remarked.
"Well, we would like to see if President Trump can help us get home," she urged. "We have been in close contact with our congressman back home. And, we do appreciate everything the American government is doing to get us home. But, you know, every day it's getting worse here and we're just feeling the tension."
"And, we feel that we need to get home," Singiani concluded.
Fox News' Ryan Gaydos contributed to this report.