To further protect the public from the deadly Wuhan coronavirus or the novel Coronavirus (nCov), a former Quezon City solon is urging shopping malls in the city to install thermal scanners that can detect symptoms in people already infected.
Thermal scanners are useful in areas where people converge such as malls prone to nCov carriers, according to former lawmaker Winston ‘Winnie’ Castelo.
“The fight against nCov requires everybody’s cooperation.”
“With these equipment present in malls, we can help prevent the spread of the virus, the likelihood of which is very high if one unsuspecting carrier decides to go shopping,” Castelo, now a councilor representing the city’s Second District, explained.
Castelo said a partnership between mall owners and the government led by the Department of Health can make the measure very effective.
“The fight against nCov requires everybody’s cooperation. The government can’t do it alone. The private sector has to lend a helping hand,” the councilor said.
“We are trying all possible means to defend our people from this sickness which has already cost so many lives in China and may continue to so in many parts of the world if we don’t get our acts together,” Castelo added.
Latest reports said “the flu-like virus had killed at least 170 people, all of them in China. More than 7,700 others have been infected in more than a dozen countries, including five confirmed cases in the United States.”
“But we shouldn’t be scared of the statistics. Rather, let’s be more prepared to face the challenge,” Castelo added.