Zamora extends closure of San Juan market as more workers got COVID-19

Market workers disinfect Agora Market in San Juan City in this file photo taken on July 2, after a vendor tested positive of CoVid 19. The mayor of San Juan immediately ordered the closure and disinfection of the market. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO / GRIG C. MONTEGRANDE

MANILA, Philippines — San Juan Mayor Francis Zamora announced on Wednesday that the temporary closure of the Agora Market is extended to July 15 after it was found that more vendors and workers have tested positive for the coronavirus.

In a statement, Zamora said that the temporary closure of the market is extended until July 15, after 23 of the 614 results from swab tests of market vendors and workers came out positive for SARS-COV-2.

Those who tested positive, Zamora said, are all asymptomatic and are currently being isolated while getting medical treatment.

The close contacts of those who tested positive have also been tested and are in quarantine, the mayor added.

“I ordered the temporary closure of the market pending the results of the swab tests conducted on our market vendors and workers. Unfortunately, a number of them turned out positive so we are extending the closure as per the guidelines of the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases and National Task Force. The health and well-being of San Juañenos must take precedence,” Zamora said.

The San Juan local government earlier ordered the temporary closure of the market after the fish vendor tested positive for the novel coronavirus.

As for the vendors who tested negative for COVID-19, they will be allowed to go back to the market on July 16, but they need to secure a special health clearance from the City Health Office.

“To make sure our constituents are safe when they come to the market, the city government will implement stringent measures through our Business Permits and Licensing Office and our City Health Office with the help of the market administration and the vendors and workers themselves, ” Zamora said.

JPV