Coastal borders-watch vs. Omicron variant
SUAL, INFANTA AND DASOL
THE movements of foreign vessels passing through coastal communities in Pangasinan will be closely monitored by the Provincial Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) amid the threat of Omicron, the new COVID-19 variant of concern.
In a radio interview on Wednesday, Provincial Health Office (PHO) chief, Dr. Anna de Guzman, said coastal towns should watch out for crew of foreign vessels that usually stop-over to replenish their food and water.
She said the towns of Sual, Infanta and Dasol will have to be watched closely because it is in these towns where foreign ships dock or pass through.
The adoption of the new preventive measures was decided during a meeting of the technical working group of the Provincial IATF on Monday following the report on the detection of Omicron variant in South Africa and arrival of three persons from South Africa.
De Guzman, however, clarified there was no order from Governor Amado Espino III on the return of Safe, Swift, and Smart Passage (S-PaSS) as a requirement for inbound travelers to Pangasinan. Presently, only the presentation of vaccination cards and government-issued identification cards are required.
De Guzman said the local task force is hoping that the measures in airports and seaports in the country will be enough to prevent the entry of Omicron in the Philippines and in the province.
Meanwhile, she said the province is striving to further increase the vaccination rate to attain population protection.
“We are averaging at 2,000 to 3,000 vaccines administered daily in connection with the national vaccination days. We are almost at 70 percent for the first dose while the local government units will continue to inoculate as much as possible even after the national vaccination days since the Department of Health has assured us that Pangasinan will have sufficient vaccines for the residents,” she said.
She added there was also enough supply of syringes to support the immunization ramp-up.
Meanwhile, de Guzman said the Alert Level 2 status of Pangasinan should remain even in the face of the threat from the Omicron variant. “But of course, it is the National IATF that will decide,” she said. (Jerick Pasiliao)
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