Cebu City EOC: UniTeam rally could be a ‘superspreader’

But risk remains low since event was held in an open space

UniTeam Cebu grand rally | Cebu City PIO

CEBU CITY, Philippines — Any huge gatherings like the recent UniTeam rally in Cebu City could be a ‘superspreader’ of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

But for Cebu City Councilor Joel Garganera, there was ‘minimal risk’ of transmission among participants of the UniTeam Festival Rally Cebu since the around 300, 000 Cebunaos who came to the Filinvest Grounds at the South Road Properties (SRP) were all wearing face masks.

Also the event venue was an open space, says Garganera, the chief implementer of the Cebu City Emergency Operations Center (EOC).

“Well all gatherings for that matter are potential area of transmission. Ang one thing lang gud nga in an open area, outdoor, and then people are wearing masks, protection na na,” she said in an interview on Tuesday, April 19.

But as a precaution, he is asking Cebuanos who plan to also join political gatherings in the coming days to make sure that they are fully vaccinated.

Garganera said it is difficult to strictly enforce social distancing in political gatherings because of the presence of a huge throng.

Photos from the UniTeam rally show that there were some participants who started to remove their face masks while they were at the venue.

Some of the politicians also opted to remove their face masks as they spoke on stage.

Garganera said that should another outbreak occur after the campaign season, the city government is prepared to handle this.

The Moses Quarantine Center at the North Reclamation Area is ready to accommodate patients while the NOAH complex at the SRP can also be immediately reverted back to being a quarantine facility.  The NOAH complex is now used as a  vaccination center.

Even the hospitals have their own protocols in case of an upgrade in the city’s Alert Level Status.

“Ato na nang gifactor in. The EOC and all the responder, we are ready. That is already a muscle memory. Cebuanos should also know by now nga naay isolation, home isolation,” said Garganera.

Garganera said that in the last two-years that the city was under strict quarantine restrictions as a result of the pandemic, they have been constantly monitoring and trying to education everyone on what needs to be done in case of an infection.

And despite the many political gatherings in the city in the past days, its active cases remained low at 30.

Of the city’s 80 barangays, 61 no longer have active cases of COVID-19.

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