While there is already a temperature testing site presently set up at the entry into Linden — at Bamia, along the Linden- Soesdyke Highway — a new health and safety feature was recently added.
Vehicles are now being sprayed at the checkpoint, which serves as a main security entrance into Region Ten, and according to Linden Mayor Waneka Arrindell, there are also plans to have vehicles sprayed upon exit.
This new feature is part of the intensified efforts of the Regional Health and Emergency Committee (RHEC) to eliminate the spread of COVID-19.
“Through the RHEC, the decision was made that they should start to spray vehicles upon entrance, and I think they’re also attempting to do that on exit. And that came out of the Agriculture Department (of the Regional Democratic Council). They’re using a solution…to spray those vehicles, the wheels and more so the handles…. So that’s happening right now as a means to minimise the virus entering into Linden… It’s something that has been put in place, and so far, it’s working for us”, Arrindell, who is also part of the Committee, recently stated.
With the numbers increasing, Arrindell said, it is now time to work to have persons in the community adjust to social distancing guidelines during the day. She noted that there is still too much movement of persons in Linden during this time.
“Our biggest concern is (that) during the day time persons are still moving around too much. It’s hoped that persons would understand the importance of staying at home, unless you need to be on the roadways. I think the gazetted document sent out by the Ministry of (Public) Health speaks to that, and so what we’re trying to attempt at this point is to see how we can work with persons adhering during the day to social distancing in terms of on the parks; on our roadways and in transportation, the cars and the buses”, she explained.
The Mayor added that the Linden Mayor and Town Council has also been observing the movement of people in public spaces in the community, including at transportation parks and market areas. As such, she noted that there has been a noticeable reduction when compared to times past. Nevertheless, she said there is still need to further limit daytime movements.
“So it’s a work in progress, and of course we want to encourage persons to stay at home as much as (they) possibly can”, she said.
Additionally, Arrindell explained that increased regular sanitisation is also in the pipeline for essential areas in Linden.
“We’re trying to sanitise the markets as often as possible. We have washed the market place twice so far, but what we’re trying to do now, we’re trying to do basic sanitizing at least two times a week. We’re going to be spraying the market and so forth”, she noted.
The Council, she stressed, is urging market vendors to sanitise their work space as much as possible, and she highlighted that the Council’s sanitisation workers have been trained by the Public Health Ministry to carry out such functions.
On Wednesday, the Region recorded its 10th COVID-19 case. So far, there has been one death linked to the virus in the Region.
