Hanjin shipyard workers cautioned on malaria

Subic Freeport authorities reiterated yesterday its warning on possible malaria outbreak with the onset of rainy season urging thousands of workers of Hanjin shipyard at the Redondo Peninsula and residents in nearby communities to take preventive measures against the mosquito-borne infectious disease which is endemic in that particular area.

The Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) issued its warning and cited that, “it is very necessary” for residents and workers staying at sitio Agusuhin, barangay Cawag near the shipbuilding facility of Hanjin Heavy Industries and Construction Corp.-Philippines (HHIC-Phil) to avoid malaria infection.

In a press statement, SBMA administrator Armand Arreza said the SBMA is maintaining in the area a Malaria Task Force (MTF) office, which is under the direct supervision of Dr. Solomon Jacalne, head of the SBMA Public Health and Safety Department.

The office was established to ensure that all necessary assistance with regards to the prevention of the spread of malaria is immediately put in place, especially during the rainy season when the nesting places of malaria-carrying mosquitoes are disturbed by rainfall, the statement said.

“This unit has implemented the anti-malaria program since Hanjin started constructing its shipyard in the area in 2006,” Arreza explained. “So we’re calling on residents and workers to please cooperate with the task force so that we can prevent infections.”

Sitio Agusuhin, which is the site of the Hanijn shipyard, is geographically within the Subic Bay Freeport Zone. However, it is under the political jurisdiction of the municipality of Subic, Zambales.

Arreza said that because of this, Subic town undertakes the delivery of basic services to Agusuhin while the SBMA coordinates with the local government unit on its programs and activities in the area, including the operation of the Anti-Malaria Task Force.

The SBMA official also said that on the recommendation of Jacalne, the SBMA Board passed in October 2008 a resolution requiring new job applicants and on-board workers in the area to undergo mandatory malaria screening before being issued their ID passes.

Newly-hired workers of HHIC-Phil, or those working for sub-contractors of the Korean shipbuilder within the vicinity of Agusuhin, were also required to renew their ID passes every six months, while regular personnel were made to renew passes every year.

“Considering the endemic nature of malaria in the Redondo area, the mandatory screening of all officers and employees of locators located in the Redondo Peninsula and other hotspots will prevent the spread of the infection,” Jacalne said.

Evelyn Crisini, supervisor of the SBMA Pass Processing Office which also conducts malaria monitoring just outside the Hanjin main gate in Agusuhin, said that in the month of July alone, 1,815 workers have undergone malaria screening, with all tests resulting in negative findings.

“In case a worker is found to be positive of malaria, he or she is immediately referred to the Department of Health for proper disposition,” Crisini said.

Meanwhile, Jacalne advised stay-in workers and residents in Agusuhin to maintain clean, comfortable and safe sleeping quarters by fitting windows with fine-meshed screens, using mosquito nets, regularly spraying sleeping quarters with anti-mosquito agents, and clearing the environs of stagnant ponds and pools of water.

“Malaria can now be easily prevented just by knowing what to do to eradicate the mosquito vectors (malaria carrier) and how to prevent the spread of the disease,” Jacalne added.