Evacuees sa Rodriguez, Rizal sumailalim sa COVID-19 testing

Nagsagawa ng COVID-19 testing sa bayan ng Rodriguez, Rizal nitong Miyerkoles, kung saan kasama sa mga na-test ang mga evacuee na nasalanta ng Bagyong Ulysses.

Nasa 1,000 residente ng bayan, kasama ang evacuees, ang sumailalim sa swab test.

Mula nang manalasa ang bagyo, hindi na nasusunod ang physical distancing sa masikip na evacuation centers, tulad ng Kasiglahan Village Senior High School.

Wala na ring face mask ang mga residenteng tumutuloy sa evacuation center, na maaari sanang magsilbing pag-iingat laban sa nakahahawang sakit.

"Expanded testing ito," paliwanag ni Dr. Carmela Javier, municipal health officer.

"Dito, ang target ay vulnerable groups and ang evacuees natin sa different evacuation areas ay papupuntahin namin dito," aniya.

Panawagan para sa batang may sakit

Sa isang evacuation center tumutuloy ang pamilya ng 4 na taong gulang na si Mary Gelle Peregrino, na nagka-tuberculous, meningitis at ngayo'y may cerebral palsy at hydrocephalus.

LOOK: Among those still needing help in Kasiglahan Village in Rodriguez are 4-year old Mary Gelle Peregrino who had TB meningitis & is suffering from cerebral palsy and hydrocephalus according to her brother. Also needing assistance is a group of women who make pot holders. pic.twitter.com/HZ5U9eJSDa

— Adrian Ayalin (@adrianayalin) November 25, 2020

Nasa 27 pamilya ang kasama nina Peregrino sa center, na pawang mga nakatira sa Bukid Extension ng Kasigalahan Village na na-wash out ng umapaw na ilog noong kasagsagan ng bagyo.

"Nanawagan po kami upang magkaroon sana si Mary Gelle ng ano makakuha po kami ng tulong sa kaniya," ayon sa kapatid niyang si Ian Clyde.

Kasama umano sa mga kailangan ni Mary Gelle ang gamot at gatas.

Patuloy naman ang pagdating ng private donors, tulad ng isang namigay ng lugaw sa Kasiglahan Village Senior High School.

Tuwing may darating na ayuda, takbuhan pa rin ang mga taga-Kasiglahan Village para makakuha ng tulong.

Sa tala ng lokal na pamahalaan, may 2,000 pang evacuee na hindi makauwi sa kani-kanilang mga bahay.

https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/11/25/20/evacuees-sa-rodriguez-rizal-sumailalim-sa-covid-19-testing

Caroling not allowed in Davao City

CAROLING activities would have to be skipped this year after Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio prohibited the said activity this Christmas season while the city is still under a state of pandemic.

"Dili nato i-allow ang caroling kay ang singing is one activity na worse pa sa talking kay malagpot ang laway (We will not allow caroling because singing is one of the human activities that are worse than talking)," Duterte-Carpio said on Monday, November 23, via 87.5 FM Davao City Disaster Radio.

This was also the main reason why churches are mandated to have only one singer during masses and have been prohibited to conduct community singing.

The mayor said singing may transmit droplets from one person to another.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), viruses can spread from an infected person's mouth or nose in small liquid particles when they sing, cough, sneeze, speak, or breathe heavily.

An article from sciencedaily.com said a study from the Aerosol Technology at Lund University shows that singing -- particularly loud and consonant-rich singing -- spreads a lot of aerosol particles and droplets into the surrounding air.

"Some droplets are so large that they only move a few decimeters from the mouth before they fall, whereas others are smaller and may continue to hover for minutes. In particular, the enunciation of consonants releases very large droplets and the letters B and P stand out as the biggest aerosol spreaders," Aerosol Technology doctoral student Malin Alsved said.

Meanwhile, City Social Welfare and Development Office (CSWDO) head Marlissa Gallo said they are constantly monitoring areas that are frequented by street dwellers, including mendicants.

Gallo encouraged Dabawenyos to refrain from giving them alms.

"Bawal gyud na. Every day naa tay operations sa street dwellers, apil na diha ang caroling and begging (It is not allowed. Every day we have operations to check on street-dwellers, including those who are caroling and begging)," she said.

At present, CSWDO is in coordination with the Public Safety and Security Command Center (PSSCC), the Davao City Police Office (DCPO), and the City Transport and Traffic Management System (CTTMO) to further intensify the operations, especially with the Christmas season.

Gallo also told Dabawenyos to report to the CSWDO, the police, and the barangay about the presence of carolers in their area.

"Dili man na siya essential nga movement, covered na sa Covid protocol nato. Pwede [mag report] sa police, CSWDO, and sa barangay (It is not considered essential movement, it is covered by our Covid protocol. They may report to the police, CSWDO, or the barangay," she said.

Based on the recent executive orders in the city, non-essential movements and gatherings are strictly prohibited as these might be "super spreaders" of the Covid-19 virus.

Young children, who are mostly doing carolings, are also prohibited from going outside as they are considered vulnerable to the virus.

Interior Secretary Eduardo Año recently encouraged the public to do all their Christmas activities online.

"Kung magkakaroon ng caroling, siguro online na lang, online caroling pero yung personal at saka face-to-face ay sa ngayon hindi pa muna nararapat dahil hindi pa natin nafa-flatten ang (If there would be carolings, these can be done online. Online caroling is okay but personal and face-to-face is not because we have yet to flatten the) curve (of coronavirus disease 2019)," Año said in an interview. (With reports from CIO and PNA)

Bids sought for parts of South Commuter Railway project

 THE Transportation department has started seeking bidders for the construction of viaducts, bridges, nine stations, and a depot for use by the South Commuter Railway project.

“The Department of Transportation (DoTr)… through its procuring agent, Procurement Service (PS) of the Department of Budget and Management (DBM), now invites sealed bids, including technical and financial bids, from eligible bidders for the four contract packages,” the department said Tuesday.

The packages on offer are: building and civil engineering works for an 8.5-kilometer railway viaduct, including elevated stations in Alabang and Muntinlupa; building and civil engineering works for a 12.8-km railway viaduct, including elevated stations in San Pedro, Pacita, Biñan and Santa Rosa; building and civil engineering works for a 10.28-km railway viaduct, including elevated stations in Cabuyao and Calamba; and building and civil engineering works on a 22-hectare depot with buildings and facilities in Banlic, a barangay of Calamba.

The South Commuter Railway project is financed by the Asian Development Bank (ADB).

“Works will be procured through an open competitive bidding in accordance with ADB’s procurement policy,” the department said.

“The open competitive bidding will be conducted in accordance with the procedures in the bid documents following the ‘Single-Stage: One Envelope (including technical and financial bids),’ process, without pre-qualification,” it added.

The department added that bids must be submitted to the PS-DBM office in Manila on or before 10 a.m. on March 23, together with a bid security as specified in the bidding documents. — Arjay L. Balinbin

https://www.bworldonline.com/bids-sought-for-parts-of-south-commuter-railway-project/