Dubai OFW shares Day 2 onboard quarantine ship docked in Manila

  DUBAI – A day after her viral post on being quarantined in a ship docked in Manila, Dubai-based Filipino Edelle Deci said she hopes airing her experience would help Filipinos prepare about quarantine conditions amid the coronavirus pandemic. Speaking to Expatmedia.net on Friday, Deci said she was grateful that Philippine officials acted quickly on the concerns she raised in her video. She was on a happier mood on Saturday, posting a photo of a “free Smart sim card with 6gb internet” that she received onboard the 2GO ship that served as her quarantine facility. Deci said she hopes her video on Thursday will give Filipinos “an idea about what to expect in quarantine should they come home this time”. Deci, a 25-year-old employee of a tourism company in Dubai, said had she known that she would be taken on mandatory quarantine despite having no symptoms of coronavirus, she would not have taken the flight back to the Philippines. “I was relying on announcements, and was under the impression that we would be advised to go on home quarantine. Had I known about the mandatory quarantine here, I would not have flown home. My boss told me that if there was a chance to fly home I should just take it and work from home in the Philippines so I can also avoid paying rent in Dubai,” she told Expatmedia.net. Deci arrived in Manila on Emirates flight EK 334 from Dubai on Thursday (April 16) and was taken, along with a group of passengers, to a 2GO ship docked at Pier 15 in Manila that had been converted into a quarantine facility. In her now deleted live video, she described the facility as “unfit for quarantine”, saying that there were traces of dirt in some areas. The Filipina also showed video footage of narrow bunk beds, many without mattresses, and cited the unhygienic public toilet. “I don’t think this is how a quarantine facility should be. We are going to get sick here,” she said in Filipino. The Philippine Department of Transportation (DOT) apologised to Deci in a statement on Friday and said it was working to rectify the issues she pointed out. “We again apologize for any shortcoming, and we will see to it that we take the necessary remedial action, as we both endure and acknowledge our sacrifices amid the difficulty of our situation,” the DOT said in a statement.

Improvements at quarantine ship

Speaking to Expatmedia.net, Deci said conditions have improved since the DOT learned about their condition in the quarantine facility. “It did improve somehow. They started cleaning the rooms and the comfort rooms, which is highly appreciated,” Deci told Expatmedia.net on Friday. She also said that they were given free facemasks and were told that food will also be served free of charge. Her group was previously informed that they would have to pay a fee of P180 per day for their meals. The Filipina said she will be heading to her hometown in Tarlac after her 14-day quarantine period.

In pictures

Meanwhile, DOT Assistant Secretary for Communications and Commuter Affairs Goddes Hope Libiran said that "social distancing is rigidly enforced by maritime agencies onboard the quarantine ships from 2GO, in compliance with the guidelines set by the Department of Health". 2GO quarantine ship in Manila Libiran said the measures include accommodating only 282 people per ship, with only two passengers occupying every cluster of four bunk beds. 2GO quarantine ship in Manila The official also said that in the dining halls, seats and tables are one meter apart. 2GO quarantine ship in Manila "The shared bathroom can accommodate five people but is restricted to two people at a time," she added. 2GO quarantine ship in Manila "The Department of Transportation, Philippine Coast Guard, Philippine Ports Authority, and Marina are continuously working with 2GO to efficiently manage the stringent compliance to these guidelines in all quarantine facilities in Pier 15 to ensure the safety of passengers," Libiran said. ICA/Expat Media
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