Caballo island eyed for Ebola quarantine

MANILA, Philippines - An island hosting a Philippine Navy installation at the mouth of Manila Bay will serve as home for three weeks for 112 Filipino peacekeepers returning from Ebola-stricken Liberia.

The members of the Philippine contingent will be quarantined on Caballo Island, located 2.6 miles east of Corregidor, when they return to the country on Nov. 11.

According to the website corregidorisland.com, Caballo has an area of 75 acres and appears as a wedge of rock jutting out from the sea. It is also known as the Navy’s Fort Hughes.

“The peacekeepers will enjoy their stay in that island,” Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) public affairs chief Lt. Col. Harold Cabunoc told reporters at Camp Aguinaldo yesterday.

He said the soldiers can go fishing and nature tripping. If they choose to stay indoors, the peacekeepers can surf the Internet or watch their favorite cable channel.

Cabunoc said the island stay is a fitting reward for the Filipino troops who risked their lives to maintain peace in Liberia.

“They risked their lives. They were at risk of being shot or stabbed by conflicting groups. They were sent there to keep the peace, risking their lives and limbs,” he said. “When they return, let’s reward them. We will follow the quarantine procedures while making our soldiers happy.”

Sources said security officials including Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin, Navy chief Vice Adm. Jesus Millan, Air Force chief Lt. Gen. Jeffrey Delgado, Office of Civil Defense administrator Alexander Pama and Joint Task Group Liberia chief Capt. Luzviminda Camacho inspected the quarantine site yesterday.

They were accompanied by representatives of the Department of Health (DOH) and AFP Medical Center.

Officials, however, declined to confirm the information.

Cabunoc said measures are being done to ensure the safety of residents in the island. He urged the public not to be afraid of the peacekeepers, noting that they are not considered “high-risk personnel.”

“The high-risk personnel include health personnel or doctors treating Ebola patients, people who bathe those who died of Ebola and those who kiss patients. They (peacekeepers) are not part of the category,” he said.

Health officials said AFP doctors will be attending to the peacekeepers, but the DOH is ready to send additional physicians trained on Ebola prevention if needed.

The military originally planned to quarantine the peacekeepers at the Armed Forces Peacekeeping Operations Center in Capas, Tarlac. The plan was dropped amid protests from local officials who are worried about its effect on the town’s health and tourism.

The Philippines pulled out its peacekeepers in Liberia following the outbreak of the Ebola virus, which has killed about 4,900 people.

Meanwhile, the provincial board of Pampanga urged AFP chief Lt. Gen. Gregorio Catapang Jr. to quarantine the returning peacekeepers in a secluded health facility outside Central Luzon.

Earlier reports said the AFP was considering military facilities at Clark Air Base in Pampanga and Fort Magsaysay in Nueva Ecija to quarantine the soldiers for 21 days.

Stop Ebola jokes – DOH

The DOH yesterday called on the public to stop spreading jokes and false reports about the dreaded Ebola virus.

Acting Health Secretary Janette Garin said they are discussing with the Department of Justice possible sanctions against those making jokes and spreading false information similar to a bomb hoax.

“Public health is everybody’s concern so each of us must be responsible and should not spread false and unconfirmed information that could create panic,” Garin said.

The DOH dismissed a report circulating online that 18 Ebola patients have been confined in a Quezon City hospital.

“There is no truth to this report. No case of Ebola has entered the Philippines. The website Viral Ninja (safeurlpath.com) where the online report came out, was a hoax,” Garin said.

She said Gemma Sheridan, who was identified as the source of the online report, is not an employee of the DOH.

“We appeal to the public not to spread unconfirmed and baseless reports about Ebola that could create fear among the people,” Garin said.

Lyndon Lee Suy, spokesman for the DOH, said they were trying to trace the source of the online report.

“The country remains free from Ebola,” Lee Suy said, adding all ports and airports are on alert to prevent the entry of suspected Ebola patients.

OFWs won’t go home

Only two of the 806 overseas Filipino workers in Ebola-hit countries in West Africa have registered for repatriation, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said yesterday.

DFA spokesman Charles Jose said the government will deploy a Rapid Response Team (RRT) next week to assess the situation of OFWs in West Africa. –With Mayen Jaymalin, Pia Lee-Brago, Ric Sapnu