Add’l isolation facilities to rise in Benguet

ADDITIONAL isolation facilities in the province of Benguet is being constructed by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) to accommodate more Covid- 19 patients and prevent transmission.

Following the Provincial Inter Agency Task Force ( IATF) meeting, Governor Melchor Diclas disclosed more isolation facilities is being constructed and targeted to be completed before the end of 2020.

He said the P8.2 million quarantine facility located in Ambongdolan, Tublay will be completed by December 18, this year.

The DPWH started the project on October 7 with a 20-bed capacity eyed to serve Tublay and nearby towns.

Diclas added another isolation facility at the Benguet General Hospital is being fasttracked for completion before the end of the year.

“Although the completion date is January 2021, the DPWH said they will finish the project before December ends,” said the governor adding the P13 million facility has a 16 bed- capacity.

Diclas added the DPWH also reported they are going to construct another isolation facility in Itogon worth P12.1 million with a 42-bed capacity that can also be used by other towns of the province.

Aside from the ongoing construction of additional facilities, he added the V Dormitory in T. Alonzo, Baguio City with more than 60 bed capacity can still accommodate Covid19 patients.

Diclas added home quarantine is still discouraged, citing the municipal health office and provincial health office will only allow home quarantine provided that the patients are monitored by the barangay health emergency response teams.

With Manakayan having the most Covid - 19 active cases, the province have requested to the Department of Education – Cordillera Administrative Region (DepEd – CAR) for Marivic Elementary School, Paco Elementary School, Lepanto National High School and Lepanto Elementary School as isolation facility.

Before schools are used as isolation or quarantine facility, there must be a certification from the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) the school is the last resort; certification from the Department of Health (DOH) or the Municipal Health office the school is suitable to become isolation or quarantine facility; inventory of facilities for use as quarantine or isolation facility; and vicinity maps identifying the roads and buildings to be used.

Photo by Dave Leprozo Jr. TRIBUTE. Trisha Esperanza paints a portrait of her great great great grandfather Shepday, an Ibaloy tribal elder from Tuding, Itogon as residents in the area express themselves through street art .