There were many gatherings before the latest cluster was found, say PHIs
The Public Health Inspectors’ (PHIs) Union shows how so many have got affected in the Minuwangoda cluster, after the identification of a COVID-19 positive on October 4 by chance by the doctors of the Gampaha Hospital.
The Epidemiology Unit’s thinking is that the infections may have been there since about September 20. There were two weekends between September 20 and October 4 during which many of these factory workers went home. They also share boardings with workers of other factories. During this period, there had also been a funeral, an alms- giving and a pirith gedara in the Gampaha district, said union President Upul Rohana, explaining how people go all out to help others.
He said that 80% of the workers who attended the funeral have tested positive, making the tracing of all their contacts very challenging. There are also some connections that are not revealed openly like the person who tested posi
We got the Brandix returnees as individuals, so there was confusion
The Brandix staff members who returned from India were quarantined in hotels but when handed over to the PHIs for the second 14-day home quarantine we didn’t know they
tive in Ambakandawila, Chilaw. The caseload is heavy and now almost all districts have positive patients.
“We have found some patients where we cannot find the origin of the infection but we cannot say that they are not connected to the Minuwangoda cluster,” he said.
In retrospect, Mr. Rohana says that when a large number of workers fell ill, the Brandix company should have suspected that something was going on. Earlier, the PHIs had visited the factory to check whether the guidelines were followed and pointed out where they could be strengthened.
Pointing out that not only the people but also
were a group from that company, said Mr. Upul Rohana, explaining how the union Secretary had gone public that they never quarantined Brandix staff.
the authorities let down their guard with regard to preventive measures, Mr. Rohana said that this was why it was important to bring in the Gazette to set out the regulations to combat COVID-19 under the Quarantine and Prevention of Diseases Ordinance of 1897.
He urged that all stakeholders in the battle to control the virus should work in tandem and not in isolation. There should be a meeting with the PHIs at least once a month.
Citing an example where there is a gap in coordination at ground level, Mr. Rohana said that sometimes when a positive case is identified they get the information from the intelligence service and not from the Epidemiology
Unit. Then they have to confirm it by giving a round of calls.
He recalls how a student sitting the Grade 5 Scholarship examination was in self-quarantine but there were moves by the security forces to take him to a quarantine centre.
“We said we would take the health precautions and give the student a safety kit and send the student for the exam. Soon after the student finished the exam, the child was sent to a quarantine centre,” added Mr. Rohana whose union has 1,870 PHIs working in 352 Medical Officer of Health (MOH) areas.
Looking at the possibilities of how there could have been a leak of the virus, he said that the airport was at fault in some instances. When SriLankan Airlines crew arrive they go into home quarantine, but there are no proper guidelines and they are not under the supervision of anyone. Another risk is smuggling rackets between Sri Lankans and Indians which happen on the high seas.