Tarlac jobless turn bunny suits into PPE for COVID-19 front line workers

Photo by The Bunny Project

VICTORIA, TARLAC—Fifty residents of this town who lost their jobs due to the Luzon lockdown have been hired to tailor bunny suits which have been repurposed into personal protective equipment (PPE) for health workers battling the coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

Melissa Yeung Yap, chief executive officer of Katinko Oils and Ointment, started the bunny suit project on March 19 and aims to produce 10,000 colorful PPE from the bunny suits, which are normally worn by scientists in laboratories to prevent contamination.

Yap’s new contractors earn a minimum of P600 per day and have been stitching together the suits in their homes after undergoing the province’s Training and Placement Network Program.

Tarlac Gov. Susan Yap ordered 3,000 suits for Tarlac health workers, said the Katinko CEO who is married to the governor’s son, Victoria Mayor Christian Yap.

The project has produced 6,000 suits which have been distributed to 200 hospitals in the country, she said. They are producing more due to high demand.

Photo by The Bunny Project

“We started out doing this for free because the company financed the project,” Yap said.

“But some doctors offered to buy the suits so we can keep the project running and provide free suits to hospitals that could not afford them,” she said.

Some of the revenues were spent on suit materials like zippers. Donors also pitched in.

The project produces three types of bunny suits—water resistant suits, disposable suits, and cleanroom garments.

Edited by TSB