A 124-bed quarantine facility at the Port of Capinpin in Bataan intended for seafarers is now operational.
The Department of Transportation (DOTr) and the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) commissioned the facility Friday, October 9.
It has an area of about 1,271.6 square meters with a 124-bed capacity including 25 cubicles intended for high-risk cases separated by a nursing station.
The construction started on September 23 and was completed on October 7. It was funded by the Lopez Group of Companies as part of its P100 million donation to the transportation department and PPA in support of the fight against the coronavirus pandemic.
According to PPA, the quarantine facility was established inside Port of Capinpin in Orion to prioritize the accommodation of seafarers involved in crew change activities at the port. It will be managed by the PPA.
It can be recalled that last September 5, the first crew change activity outside Metro Manila was conducted at Port Capinpin.
From September 1 to October 6, the one-stop shop at the port that facilitates the seafarers’ requirements for crew change operations has served a total of 27 vessels with 564 Filipino seafarers and 20 foreign nationals.
Key officials present in the commissioning of the new quarantine facility are PPA General Manager Jay Santiago, Office for Transportation Security Administrator Raul Del Rosario, DOTr Transportation Undersecretary for Administrative Service and Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) Representative Artemio Tuazon, Jr., Assistant Secretary for Procurement and Project Implementation Giovanni Lopez, Assistant Secretary for Maritime Narciso Vingson, Jr. and Assistant Secretary for Communications and Commuter Affairs Goddes Hope Libiran.
Bataan Governor Albert Garcia, Bataan 2nd District Representative Jose Enrique Garcia, Municipality of Orion Mayor Antonio Raymundo, Jr. and Barangay Puting Buhangin Chairman Danilo Arsenio were also present during the event.