EOC orders zoning of Carbon Market stalls to reduce risk of COVID-19 transmission
Shoppers crowed the wet section of the Carbon Public Market in Cebu City to buy commodities after Mayor Edgar Labella announced his decision to place the city under enhanced community quarantine in March 2020. | CDND File Photo
CEBU CITY, Philippines — In the event that a vendor would test positive for the coronavirus disease, Cebu City’s Emergency Operations Center (EOC) will no longer have to close the entire Carbon Public Market complex to reduce the risk of transmission.
Instead, they will only have to close down the affected zone.
This means that lockdown will only be ordered in a particular area to allow other vendors in other parts of the market complex to continue to sell and serve the buyers, said Councilor Joel Garganera, the deputy chief implementor of the EOC.
While on lockdown, the affected zone will be disinfected, he said.
Garganera said that vendors at the affected zone will also be made to undergo testing to check who among them also contracted the infection.
Read: Successful pooled testing in Carbon Market means extension of program to other sectors – Garganera
The Carbon Public Market complex consists of three units making it easier for the EOC to identify the location and zoning of the vendors. The zones will include the seafoods, fruits, meat, and dry goods sections.
“It is only in Carbon Market that our ambulant vendors have permanent places, so they will also be part of that zoning,” said Garganera.
He added that each of the zones will be made to adopt a “one entrance, one exit” policy as a means to control the movement of people.
Read: Day 1 result of pooled testing: Only 1 out of 294 vendors is COVID-positive
However, he said that they continue to study if they would allow vendors to move to another area of the market complex in case a lockdown is implemented at their specified zone.
Garganera said that aside from preventing the spread of the infection, zoning implementation is also expected to help EOC come up with a zone map for monitoring purposes and a database of the vendors. / dcb
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