evidence: Samoa measles outbreak claims 70 lives, majority are children under five Seventy people have now died from Samoa’s measles outbreak, UN humanitarians confirmed on Tuesday, as the organization released emergency funding to help the authorities step up efforts to eradicate the preventable disease. [...] "By the end of November 2019, Samoa, Tonga, Fiji and American Samoa have all reported measles outbreaks," he said. "Prior to the ongoing outbreaks, measles vaccine coverage varied in Pacific island countries and areas, ranging from 31 per cent in Samoa to 99 per cent in the Cook Islands and Nauru."