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Wednesday, 14 October 2020 02:05 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
By Shailendree Wickrama Adittiya
The total number of confirmed cases identified in the island surpassed 5,000 yesterday, with the identification of 194 new cases.
Yesterday’s cases include 80 employees of the Minuwangoda garment manufacturing facility and contacts at quarantine centres and 114 other contacts. This brings the Divulapitiya cluster to 1,591 cases and the total number of confirmed cases in the island to 5,038.
According to the Epidemiology Unit, 1,697 persons are currently receiving treatment, including 212 at the Kamburugamuwa Hospital, 168 at the Hambantota District General Hospital, 160 at the Neville Fernando Teaching Hospital, and 156 at the National Institute of Infectious Diseases (NIID).
Hospitals are also monitoring 432 persons suspected of having COVID-19, including 138 at the Sri Jayewardenepura Hospital.
The total number of COVID-19 recoveries also rose yesterday, with 11 persons, including three foreigners, being discharged. While seven persons left the NIID, three persons left the Iranawila Hospital, and one person left the Homagama Base Hospital. A total of 3,328 persons have recovered in the island to date. According to the National Operation Centre for the Prevention of the COVID-19 Outbreak (NOCPCO), 48 persons from Qatar, eight persons from Abu Dhabi, and five persons from India arrived in the island yesterday and have been directed to quarantine centres. The NOCPCO states that 10,281 persons are currently undergoing quarantine at 90 centres managed by the Sri Lanka Army, Sri Lanka Navy, and Sri Lanka Air Force.
With 547 persons completing the process at centres yesterday, a total of 51,480 persons have left quarantine centres to date. The NOCPCO yesterday met with Health Ministry officials and owners and management of garment manufacturing facilities to discuss the current spread of the virus and how it is affecting the industry.
According to a statement issued by the Health Ministry, a decision was made to prepare special guidelines for carrying out operations in garment manufacturing facilities amidst the COVID-19 pandemic and current cluster emerging from a garment manufacturing facility in Minuwangoda.
The discussion also focused on safety guidelines for the industry and difficulties faced when carrying out operations in accordance with instructions given by the President and safety guidelines like temperature checks thrice a day, physical distancing, and wearing face masks.
Measures were also taken to ensure staff members are subjected to PCR tests twice a week and for medical officers of health to be contacted if a staff member displays symptoms. Focus was also drawn to the need for more care regarding accommodation used by employees.
Despite patients being identified from various parts of the island, Health Ministry Media Spokesperson Dr. Jayaruwan Bandara yesterday maintained there was no community transmission of the virus as all patients were identified through surveillance work carried out by the authorities.
Addressing concerns about holding the Advanced Level examination during a time when a COVID-19 cluster has emerged, Dr. Bandara said a General Election was held with health and safety mechanisms in place to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and that not a single person contracted the virus due to the elections.
“Regarding the Grade Five Scholarship Examination, if parents sent a healthy child to the exam hall, there is no way for COVID-19 to spread in that exam hall. The same applies to the Advanced Level Examination,” he said, adding that arrangements have already been made to allow students to sit for their exams from treatment facilities if they test positive for COVID-19.
In a statement issued yesterday, NOCPCO Head and Army Commander Lt. Gen. Shavendra Silva said the Tri-Forces are operating 96 quarantine centres at present, while the health sector ensures patients are transferred to a treatment facility immediately after testing positive for COVID-19 and the intelligence units are carrying out contact tracing.
While explaining that all employees of the garment manufacturing facility in Minuwangoda have been directed to treatment or quarantine facilities, Lt. Gen. Silva said: “85% of the families of employees who tested positive have been transferred to quarantine centres. Besides them, there is a certain number of persons who tested positive in connection to the Minuwangoda cluster and they have been hospitalised and are receiving treatment. The majority of their families have been taken to quarantine centres.”
He also asked public and private sector companies to operate as per the safety guidelines as issued by the Health Ministry and follow instructions given for when an employee tests positive.
Meanwhile, Police Spokesperson DIG Ajith Rohana yesterday asked all public and private sector companies to maintain updated personal files of all staff members, including name, permanent and temporary addresses, phone number currently being used, other phone numbers, and email addresses. Personnel files should also include details of who should be contacted in the event an employee cannot be reached.
“When investigating the Divulapitiya cluster, we saw that the personal files of most employees were not updated. Due to this, sometimes the contact numbers they had listed were disconnected and they were using a different phone. In some cases, they were not at the addresses provided when they joined the company. Those addresses as well as temporary addresses had changed. There were thus difficulties when locating some employees,” he said. He added that contact tracing and quarantine processes could proceed faster if companies can prepare these files in the next three days of all staff, whether permanent or temporary.
The Police Spokesperson also addressed the incident where a 21-year-old taken into Police custody by the Pugoda Police was later admitted to the Ragama Hospital due to illness, where he passed away. “The Acting IGP has decided to launch a special investigation into the incident,” he said, adding that a senior Superintendent of Police of the Colombo Mounted Police has been appointed to investigate the matter. If investigations find that the death occurred due to the actions of Police officers, strict action, both legal and disciplinary, will be taken against them.
