Presidential yacht-turned-quarantine facility to arrive in Manila on April 24

Presidential yacht BRP Ang Pangulo which has been converted to be a coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) floating quarantine facility will be arriving in Manila on April 24, according to President Rodrigo Duterte.

In his fourth weekly report to Congress on Monday, Duterte said the ship has been successfully remodeled and is currently in Davao City.

Last week, the Philippine Navy announced that the presidential yacht can accommodate a total of 28 patients with five medical personnel.

The crew have been provided with personal protective equipment and rapid antibody tests were already conducted on them, according to Philippine Navy public affairs acting director Maria Christina Roxas.

Aside from this vessel, the Department of Transportation also opened other floating quarantine hospitals with a total bed capacity of 700. These currently cater to 147 overseas Filipino workers who returned to the country.

The South Harbor passenger terminal building in Manila will also be retrofitted to serve as a COVID-19 quarantine facility. 

Other sports and convention facilities such as the Ninoy Aquino Stadium, Philippine International Convention Center, World Trade Center, Rizal Memorial Coliseum, ASEAN Convention Center, and Philippine Sports Complex were transformed into quarantine facilities.

The Chinese experts who are in the Philippines to assess the country’s response to the pandemic said that subjecting suspected cases of COVID-19 to home quarantine is ineffective in containing the spread of the disease.

"Kasi minsan ‘yung mga tao raw hindi mo talaga ma-control kung saan pupunta, so kapag COVID suspect ka, i-aadmit ka na sa ospital—so PUI ka na, ngayon ay probable na ang tawag natin o suspect—i-a-admit ka hanggang malaman kung ikaw ay positive o hindi," Philippine General Hospital (PGH) spokesperson Dr. Jonas del Rosario said.

"They really encourage facilities that will quarantine kagaya ng ginagawa na natin ngayon," he added.

As of April 20, the Philippines recorded a total of 6,459 cases of COVID-19, with 428 deaths and 613 recoveries. — RSJ, GMA News