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Former Marshall resident back in Minnesota after being stuck in Peru

MARSHALL — Dan West, a 2014 Marshall High School graduate who was trapped Peru because of a government lockdown, is back home.

He was able to fly to Miami Wednesday night and then to Minneapolis Thursday morning.

What began as an exciting vacation for him and a college buddy starting March 12, turned into a not fun order to shelter in place as a result of a government edict to combat the COVID-19 coronavirus.

They were told they were stuck there until the end of March. He was in contact with other United States citizens, about 200 of them, via social media, all sharing information about the possibilities of getting flights home.

Other citizens, such as a group from Wisconsin, were repatriated as well this week.

The Associated Press on Wednesday that the U.S. Department and the U.S. Embassy in Peru had secured the needed permission from the Foreign Ministry in the country for the flight.

Peruvian President Martin Vizcarra, a soft-spoken U.S. ally, was among the first in Latin America to close borders over the coronavirus pandemic, deploy the military and require people to stay in their homes. Initially he allowed waivers for chartered repatriation flights, but that ended Saturday.

West is the son of Dave and Kim West of Marshall and lives in St. Paul with his wife and fellow MHS grad, Jessica Oaxaca.

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