Gov’t eyeing to build 50 more quarantine facilities in next 3 weeks

Public Works and Highways Secretary Mark Villar. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO / LYN RILLON

MANILA, Philippines — The government is targeting to build 50 more quarantine facilities nationwide in the next three weeks, Public Works and Highways Secretary Mark Villar said Monday.

“Ang target po namin in the next three weeks, magtatayo po kami ng additional 50 quarantine facilities,” Villar said in an online Palace briefing.

(Our target in the next three weeks is to establish 50 additional quarantine facilities.)

Villar said there are already 52,223 available beds in government quarantine facilities for possible COVID-19 patients.

He added that more facilities are still under construction in Visayas and Mindanao.

“May ginagawa na po kami sa Region 7 na 11; sa Region 8, 16; Region 10, 20; Region 12, may na-identify kaming tatlo,” Villar said.

(We are constructing 11 in Region 7, 16 in Region 8, 20 in Region 10 and we identified three in Region 12.)

“So sa ngayon po ay madadagdagan pa dahil may kausap pa kaming mga local governments at magbibigay din sila ng area para sa pagtatayo ng additional centers,” he added.

(So this will still increase because we are in talks with local governments and they will provide an area where we can build additional centers.)

The Philippines has so far recorded 56,259 COVID-19 cases nationwide with 1,534 fatalities and 16,046 recoveries.

JPV