The Department of Transportation (DOTr) said on Thursday that all depot personnel of the Metro Rail Transit Line 3 (MRT-3) are set to undergo a rapid antibody testing after 15 workers of the rail line’s maintenance provider tested positive for the coronavirus disease (COVID-19).
“As a precautionary measure, all MRT-3 and Sumitomo-MHI-TESPI depot personnel will undergo rapid testing to be conducted by the Philippine Coast Guard,” MRT-3 director for operations Michael Capati said in a statement on Thursday.
According to Capati, those who will test positive in the rapid test will be required to undergo reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test and to go on self-quarantine while waiting for the results of the confirmatory test.
“The health and safety of our employees and passengers are primordial to us. All employees will be required to undergo testing. We have been conducting disinfection in the depot, at stations, and in trains. We will continue to implement these and other measures to contain the spread of the virus in our workplace, stations, and trains,” Capati emphasized.
He said that the MRT-3 management will implement additional health and safety protocols to further limit the interaction between the depot and station personnel, noting that there is very limited interaction between maintenance staff at the depot and those at stations.
Maintenance provider Sumitomo-MHI-TESPI reported last week that one of its depot personnel was tested positive for COVID-19 after undergoing an RT-PCR test.
A contact tracing was conducted and it was discovered that 14 out of the affected worker’s 32 contacts contracted the disease.
Meanwhile, the Land Transportation Office (LTO) suspended on Wednesday all work and transactions in Central Office and Licensing Office in Quezon City after 12 of their staff tested positive for COVID-19 following a rapid antibody testing. (Alexandria San Juan)
