With major hospitals in Metro Manila and nearby areas operating beyond full capacity, the Department of Transportation (DOTr), together with the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA), are converting two of their quarantine facilities into isolation facilities to accommodate more COVID-19 patients by tomorrow, Friday ( April 9).
These are the Eva Macapagal Super Terminal in Pier 15, Manila and the Port of Capinpin Quarantine Facility in Orion, Bataan.
The DOTr Maritime Sector currently manages the two facilities, which the Lopez Group of Companies donated.
The Eva Macapagal Super Terminal in Pier 15 was converted into a COVID-19 Treatment Facility equipped with medical requirements for treatment of COVID-19 patients.
The PPA turned over the facility to the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) in April 2020.
It has a total of 211 cubicles distributed in different zones to accommodate patients with mild, advanced, and severe COVID-19 infections.
The facility is also equipped with hospital beds, portable toilets, cargo containers for showers, and open-air dining facilities.
On the other hand, the Port Capinpin Quarantine Facility in Orion, Bataan, formally commissioned in October 2020, was initially intended to accommodate seafarers participating in crew change activities, returning Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs), as well as non-OFWs.
It has a 124 – bed capacity which includes 25 cubicles intended for high-risk individuals and separated by a fully-equipped Nurse Station plus 2 rooms with 12 bunk beds for medical frontliners.
Although the conversion is beyond the mandate of the DOTr, "We won't hesitate to help," assured Transport Secretary Arthur P. Tugade.
"We need to extend help to our healthcare facilities," PPA General Manager Jay Daniel Santiago reiterated.
In a meeting with the Task Group on Isolation/Quarantine facilities, headed by NTF Deputy Chief Implementer Vince Dizon, concerned agencies, including the DOTr and PPA, have agreed that the Department of Health (DOH) will provide the manpower and equipment needed for the operations of the said isolation facilities.
They are also carrying out a series of inspections to determine the requirements for the conversion.