Work to resume on Baguio projects at risk of becoming hazards

Many Baguio building projects were left incomplete when the Luzon quarantine was imposed to contain the coronavirus disease. PHOTO BY VINCENT CABREZA

BAGUIO CITY — Construction work will soon resume for city projects which could turn into hazard sites when the monsoon season descends on the summer capital that is strapped in for two more weeks of COVID-19 quarantine.

Three projects had been cleared, according to City Administrator Bonifacio dela Pena, a geodetic engineer, after workers and contractors complete requirements.

Among these were programs of work, a list of work crew and medical certificates saying the construction crew was fit to work.

Heavy thunderstorms struck the city last week, days after a Baguio transition team deliberated on building projects that could become public hazards during the rainy season unless repairs are immediately made.

Because of the quarantine, the movement of construction workers will be controlled by requiring them to live in on-site or off-site bunk houses for the duration of work, according to the city public information office.

Each bunkhouse must be equipped with washing, bathing and disinfection facilities including isolation areas in case an employee displays flu-like symptoms.

Workers must also wear face masks and other PPE “at all times.”

Regulations cover the workers’ personal hygiene, which prohibits them from sharing “hygiene products, plates, cutleries and drinking glasses,” and which require them to submit to a routine disinfection program.

Because of the 24-hour curfew, Baguio residents hired for these projects may start work immediately, but crew members who travel from outside Baguio must first complete a 14-day quarantine before being allowed entry into the city, and transported to their project sites.

Before the lockdown, Baguio was in the middle of a redevelopment program, designed to improve or repair vital public utilities such as sewers and major infrastructure like the Baguio market and iconic Burnham Park.

It was undertaken in reaction to complaints that Baguio suffers from overcrowding and overdevelopment.

Edited by TSB