COVID - 19 Govt. urges calm as apt measures in place

All universities shut down for two weeks 

COVID-19 poses threat to tourism and related industries

Tourists arriving from China not quarantined since March 7

Army enables operations at more quarantine centres in Kahagolla and Diyatalawa Army Base Hospital

On March 11, the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared COVID-19 as a pandemic. While Italy is currently on lockdown, China’s situation is slowly being controlled. As such, the Sri Lankan Government has imposed travel bans on passengers arriving from Italy, Iran and South Korea and more quarantine centres will be put up if the need arises. As at March 13, 29 patients are under close observation while only two confirmed cases were reported. However, due to rapidly spreading rumours and disinformation on social media platforms, people resorted to panic buying during the past two days. Against this backdrop, Dailymirror takes a look at the situation at hand. 

At BIA 
As soon as passengers disembark flights, they are being handed over to the army and thereafter, immigration, customs and health clearance need to be taken, airport health officials told Dailymirror.

“Some of these visitors come for personal reasons. There are pregnant women among them. On one occasion, a person had come down from Italy for his child’s funeral, but we couldn’t send him home. We have to send these passengers for quarantine irrespective of their urgency or social status. Visitors have to keep standing and should maintain a distance of 2-3 metres between another. There were four counters to check visitors but will be increased to seven by today evening the latest. Tourists have to arrive at the B-Gate. They are not supposed to travel via aero-bridges. They will be sent to normal exits where visitors will be taken in buses to the designated quarantine centres. So far, 15 doctors are working on a shift basis. Apart from that, seven health scanners are in operation,” they said. 

Pedestrians seen wearing face masks

Chinese nationals not quarantined anymore
It was revealed that since March 7, tourists arriving from China are not being quarantined. When questioned, airport officials told Dailymirror  they were following ‘orders from above.’ 

When JVP Propaganda Secretary Vijitha Herath questioned as to why Chinese tourists were not being quarantined, Health  Ministry Director-General Dr. Anil Jasinghe said China was no more a high-risk area as numbers infected by the virus per day had plummeted to 40 as a result of stringent control measures. 

“According to the government’s risk assessment, the risk of COVID-19 spreading from a Chinese national to a local is minimal. Therefore, the Health Ministry took a decision to refrain from quarantining people from China. Meanwhile, Italy is now on lockdown and is posing a greater threat to Sri  Lanka when compared with China,” he said. 

Panic-buying continues at popular supermarkets

Preparation at quarantine facilities 
Following quick improvisations, the army has enabled operations at two more quarantine centres in Kahagolla and Diyatalawa Army Base Hospital apart from the facilities at Punani, Kandakadu in the Eastern  Province and the Leprosy Hospital in Hendala. 

Speaking to Dailymirror, Dr. Ananda Wijewickrama of the National Institute of Infectious Diseases said those with suspected symptoms were being admitted to IDH. “The hospital is equipped with basic facilities and there are no restrictions on the numbers we are going to accommodated,” he said. 

When asked whether patients in other wards were at a risk of being infected by the virus, he said patients with suspected symptoms of coronavirus were in a separate area. Therefore, other patients have no risk of being infected, he opined.  

Directive on tourists arriving in the country 
According to a directive issued by the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau, visitors are requested to closely monitor their health for two weeks and seek medical assistance if they detect any suspected symptom. The directive includes the following: 

• Indefinite suspension of visa-on-arrival to all countries 
• All flights beginning from Iran, Italy and South Korea to Sri Lanka will be suspended from today till March 28
• A visa exemption scheme is in operation for 48 countries including Thailand, USA, UK, Japan and Australia
• Obtain a visa online prior to departure from that particular country 
• Indefinite travel ban on visitors from Iran, South Korea and Italy
• Temporary travel ban imposed on eight more EU countries from March 15-29, 2020
• 14-day quarantine on arrivals from Italy, Iran and South Korea

A statement issued President Gotabaya Rajapaksa requested the public not to panic and assist the government in its efforts to contain the situation. It further mentioned the following: 

• 14-day self-quarantine on all arrivals 
• Stock up on essential medicines 
• Stop all group tours to other countries 
• Provide health certificate after completion of quarantine period 

Occupancies have decreased
As tourist arrivals have dwindled steeply, COVID-19 is posing a threat to tourism and related industries. 

“Occupancies have decreased and this in turn will affect turnovers and staff service charges,” said Sanath Ukwatte, President of Sri Lanka Hotels Association. “The Health Ministry however is doing an excellent job to control the situation. We have informed all our hotels to take extra precautions and intensify on general hygiene protocols. Certain city hotels are now equipped with temperature monitors. We have asked outstation hotels to follow suit. As such, we are trying to reduce the risk as much as possible,” he said. 

In addition, all universities will be shut down for two weeks from today onwards. Schools will reopen on April 20. Preschools will be closed indefinitely.     
Pic by Nimalsiri Edirisinghe