Tisbury emergency management director in self-quarantine

Updated March 19

Tisbury’s emergency management director is in self-quarantine, according to Tisbury officials, after apparently being exposed to novel coronavirus, which causes COVID-19. 

Tisbury harbormaster John Crocker, former acting emergency management director, said emergency management director Micah Agnoli called him Sunday night. “He told me he was self-quarantining off-Island,” Crocker said. 

Crocker said he did not know what triggered Agnoli to self-quarantine. 

Christina Colarusso, a Chilmark Fire lieutenant who was appointed unanimously by Tisbury selectmen Tuesday night as acting emergency management director, said, “With him in quarantine,” her appointment was “the next logical thing.”

Agnoli, in text message exchanges, declined to comment on why he is in self-quarantine. 

Clues to his self-quarantine emerged from a vote by the Tisbury board of selectmen Tuesday night to replace him with Colarusso. The board and town administrator Jay Grande did not say why he had to suddenly be replaced.

But after The Times learned that he was in self-quarantine and posted a story, Grande issued a press release criticizing Crocker for confirming the self-quarantine. He wrote there was no indication Agnoli was infected with novel coronavirus. The initial post did not state he was.

“While Mr. Agnoli has self-quarantined off-Island, there is no indication that he has contracted COVID-19 or that he was otherwise exposed to it while on-Island,” Grande wrote. “Employers are mandating that employees self-quarantine if they experience flulike symptoms, regardless of whether they came into contact with someone who has been diagnosed with COVID-19 or associated with a third party who has contracted COVID-19. Mr. Agnoli remains actively engaged in the town’s emergency management planning to combat the COVID-19 pandemic from his location off-Island. He is in routine contact with other Island departments to assist and aid in the on-Island response, and is in direct contact with my office and the board of selectmen.” 

Prior to the press release, Grande said he needed somebody for the job who was on-Island and could attend meetings. He declined to acknowledge Agnoli’s self-quarantine or speak at all about Agnoli’s medical status, or any reason for his absence. He simply said Agnoli had explained “he wasn’t available to come to the Island.”

Agnoli was appointed by Tisbury selectmen in November. Grande said he left a positive mark on town emergency management. 

“He did a great job with the budget,” he said, among other improvements Agnoli did. 

Tisbury board of health chairman Jeff Pratt said Agnoli wasn’t mentioned at the board’s Tuesday meeting, and there was “no update of individuals who were in self-quarantine.”

Pratt said if something was reported to the health agent, she would compose an incident report and file it with the state. Alternatively, the state could report information to the health agent. But Pratt said he was unaware of any such report.

“We got no such notification at our board meeting yesterday,” he said. If such a report is presented to the board, names aren’t used, he noted. And if names needed to be used, he expected they would only be disclosed in executive session. If such a report was given in Agnoli’s case, the health agent would then conduct “interviews with possible contacts.”

Health agent Maura Valley could not immediately be reached for comment. 

Grande said Agnoli has been working remotely for about a month, and he hasn’t seen Agnoli in person at least that long.

On his LinkedIn page, Agnoli lists employment as a paramedic for Oak Bluffs since December. He previously served as an Edgartown EMT, and is a 2010 graduate of Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School.

It’s unclear how regularly Agnoli has been working for Oak Bluffs Ambulance.

Oak Bluffs Deputy Fire Chief Manuel Rose declined to comment on Agnoli’s quarantine status, or even to verify his employment. 

Edgartown Fire Chief Alex Schaeffer, chairman of the Vineyard’s emergency managers, said Agnoli remains on the department ambulance roster as a per diem employee as needed, and presently holds the title of assistant emergency manager for Edgartown.

“He continues to support us,” Chief Schaeffer said, noting Agnoli has been invaluable in securing grants, and that he has remotely participated in recent emergency management meetings.

Updated with more details. -Ed.