The Manila City government is preparing for the possible implementation of a lockdown in the nation’s capital amid the rise in the number of cases of the COVID-19 Delta variant in the country.
Manila City Mayor Francisco ‘Isko Moreno’ Domagoso called an emergency meeting on Wednesday (July 28) with Vice Mayor Ma. Sheilah ‘Honey’ Lacuna-Pangan and other local government health officials to discuss how to mitigate the spread of the Delta variant.
Domagoso has tasked the Manila Disaster and Risk Reduction Management Office, the Manila Barangay Bureau, and the Manila Police Department to alert its forces in case of a need for a granular lockdown.
The Mayor also coordinated with the directors of the six district hospitals, the Manila COVID-19 Field Hospital, and the Manila Health Department in case of another surge of COVID-19 cases.
“Ayaw na nating marinig na may mga namatay sa parking lot dahil wala nang space sa ospital. Grabeng dagdag pasakit ‘yun,” Domagoso said.
“Kaya ngayon na may Delta variant, it’s a good thing that we have a facility that can serve the public. Welcome po ang lahat dito,” he added.
Domagoso said the local government will continue to gear up in order to prevent the possible rise of infection of COVID-19 among residents.
“The City of Manila has actually been preparing for the worst case scenario over the past few months. Kahit noong hindi pa nagka-surge, we have kept on adding to our quarantine facilities and other resources in response to the pandemic. Hindi talaga dapat maging kampante,” he said.
As of 12:00 p.m. on Wednesday, about 642 active cases and 66,582 recoveries have been recorded. The six district hospitals currently have 32% bed capacity occupancy rate; 65% bed capacity occupancy rate for the Manila COVID-19 Field Hospital; and 9% occupancy rate for the COVID-19 quarantine facility. (Manila LGU) – jlo
