100 households in Mandaue quarantined

Residents near house of presumptive positive case for COVID-19 in Mandaue under home quarantine

A resident of Burgos Street in Barangay Alang-Alang, Mandaue City, who are placed in home quarantine, go through the disinfection process at a station manned by police and health workers as the resident return from buying supplies for their families. | Norman V. Mendoza

MANDAUE CITY, Cebu, Philippines — Police and the Mandaue City Health Office are closing a portion of Burgos Street of Barangay Alang-Alang, Mandaue City starting Wednesday night.

This is to place in quarantine households in the area after one of the residents was found to be a presumptive positive case for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

Dr. Rose Tirado, Mandaue City Health Officer, confirmed on March 26, 2020 that a patient for presumptive positive case for COVID-19 and admitted in a hospital in Cebu City lived in the area.

Read more: BREAKING: ‘Presumptive positive’ cases in Central Visayas rise to 16; Cebu City now has 12

According to Alang-Alang Barangay Councilor Kristian Cabahug, the quarantine area involved at least 100 households.

Though not all households are restricted in their movements but many of them especially near the subject’s house are barred from leaving their houses.

The police will be there round the clock until the 14-day quarantine period ends. They will be there to control the movements of the residents and to see to it that none would break the quarantine protocols.

The City Health Department under the supervision of the Department of Health have set up stations from one end of the street to to the other end — at least half a kilometer away. 

Residents, who are allowed to go out to get basic supplies, will be subjected to a thermal checkup and disinfection procedures upon their return.

“Makagawas ra hinoon mi aron makapamalit pero usa ra gitugotan sa kada balay, ” said Bande Magale, who is one of the affected residents in the area.

(We can leave our house to buy food and other supplies but only one person will be designated for every household to do this.)

“Naa nagassist na barangay official to certify that only one member of each household ang mogawas,” Magale said.

(A barangay official had assisted in the process to certify that only one member of the household would go out.)

At tent manned by policemen and health workers is seen at the entrance of Burgos Street in Barangay Alang-Alang, Mandaue City, where some 100 households have been placed in quarantine. | Norman Mendoza

About a half a kilometer stretch of the street have been closed starting last night because authorities claimed that they were disinfecting the road, which was the reason for the closure given by Tirado.

Tirado, in an interview with CDN Digital last night, said that they were placing this portion of the barangay for disinfection.

She did not reveal the real cause of the disinfection, but she said that barangays would undergo disinfection starting last Wednesday.

She said that all barangays would undergo disinfection but starting with Barangay Alang-Alang as it would be in alphabetical order.

Until, today, when she confirmed that a presumptive positive case for COVID-19 — a businessman who was admitted in a hospital in Cebu City — lived in the area.

Residents in the area said they were scared as they go on home quarantine.

Meanwhile, traffic in the area and connecting roads had been affected due to the closure of the busy street./dbs