Health officials averted what could have been "an explosion of cases" from Covid-19 in Faro, by isolating about seven dozen foreign agricultural workers, who were close to the first man infected with the new coronavirus in this county, today assured Ana Cristina Guerreiro, Regional Health Delegate.
“Had we not taken these steps, there could have been an explosion of cases in Faro», said this responsible, at a press conference that took place this afternoon, at the headquarters of the Regional Health Administration, in Faro.
On the same day he was identified the first case of Covid-19 in the Algarve capital, that of a Nepalese who was hospitalized and is "in the intensive care unit, but not in danger", the health authorities went to the field and found "three houses close together" with people who had close relations with him. .
“These people lived there and many slept in the same room. If these measures had not been taken, the group would be condemned to have 100% positive cases», said Ana Cristina Guerreiro.
In this way, the health authorities considered it necessary to guarantee the isolation, with the proper conditions, to these foreign workers, who “are mostly Indians and very few are Nepalese”.
For this purpose, the pavilion of the Santo António Basic School 2,3 in Santo António was adapted in a few hours. Faro, in order to welcome these people.
“The isolation was necessary for your protection. A division was made within the pavilion between symptomatic people and those without complaints. They were separated in space, with toilets for each of the groups, as well as separate men and women», described the regional Health delegate.
Ana Cristina Guerreiro admitted that these «perhaps were not the ideal conditions», but that «everything was done with great effort» and with «respect for those people».
The cots were, however, replaced by regular beds and «four meals are being served daily, provided by the Portuguese Red Cross», an entity that «also provided new clothes for people to get dressed».
"On the first day, Western meals were served," but now "a person is cooking vegetarian food for them with Indian spices," he added.
At the moment, 59 people remain in the pavilion.
Ana Cristina Guerreiro also revealed that her colleagues are in the field “along with other clusters of immigrants in the region”, many of them already known to the health authorities.
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