COVID-19 positive cops crammed in Crame facility

MANILA, Philippines — The situation at Camp Crame’s COVID-19 isolation facility has turned for the worse this week following a surge in infected police officers.

A video of the situation at the Kiangan Billeting Center, aired over GMA News last night, showed the plight of police officers admitted into the facility.

Instead of comfortable rooms, police officers were seen crammed together in makeshift tents, folding beds or blankets. Physical distancing protocols could no longer be observed as the area was congested.

“Ang hirap hirap. Hindi na namin alam kung ano gagawin namin dito. Paano kung may mamatay (It’s difficult. We don’t know what to do. What if someone dies)?” an unnamed police officer said in the television interview.

The police officer said they expected they would have separate rooms in order to be isolated from each others.

The Kiangan Billeting Center is situated near the Multi-Purpose Center where official activities such as press conferences are held.

Police officers who just underwent swab testing were mixed with those who are positive for the disease even while waiting for their results.

There are 55 COVID-19 beds in the facility but it has been full of patients since last week.

PNP chief Gen. Debold Sinas spent two weeks at the quarantine facility after he tested positive for the virus. It is unclear if he saw the situation outside the area.

Meanwhile, a police official said the police officers seen in the video are no longer at Camp Crame as of yesterday as they were already transferred to a quarantine facility in Calamba, Laguna.

“They were already transferred using several buses,” the source said in a text message.

The source said it just so happened that there was a sudden surge in patients and they had to look for other vacant isolation facilities.

Brig. Gen. Luisito Magnaye, PNP Health Service director, said around 61 police officers had to wait at the triage area as the facility was already full.

“Bigla kasing dumagsa ‘yung mga pasyente natin nung mga nakaraang araw (There was an influx of patients in the past few days),” he said in a television interview.