Cebu gov orders 14-day quarantine for passengers from China to Cebu

CEBU CITY –– Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia has ordered a 14-day quarantine for all passengers coming from China to Cebu amid the Wuhan coronavirus outbreak.

Garcia said she has identified two properties owned by the provincial government and the Department of Health in Central Visayas, where the passengers would be quarantined.

In a few days, Garcia said she would formalize the new policy through an executive order. The quarantine facilities will be available in two to three days.

During a multi-agency meeting on coronavirus on Thursday afternoon, Garcia said the quarantine facilities may only be able to accommodate 200 people, so they are looking for more facilities.

The governor, however, hoped that the quarantine policy would
discourage the arrival of tourists from China because they would surely be quarantined.

Garcia refused to issue an order banning Chinese nationals.

In the same meeting, Garcia also said she would create a task force on the nCoV similar to that of the African Swine Fever Task Force.

Cebu province will strengthen monitoring and surveillance in all its 16 ports with the use of handheld thermal scanners for each arriving passenger./lzb