Feature: Havana reinforces COVID-19 checkpoints amid surging cases

by Yosley Carrero

Havana, Feb. 7 (Xinhua) -- Ibrahim Lopez, a Cuban public transport officer, starts working early in the morning at a COVID-19 checkpoint on the Havana-Mayabeque border.

As the island nation strives to keep the COVID-19 pandemic at bay amid spiking infection rates, the local government in Havana has continued reinforcing regulations on inbound and outbound traffic over the weekend.

Donning a N95 mask, Lopez applies hand sanitizer or hypochlorite disinfectant solutions after interacting with coach drivers, motorists and commuters.

The 27-year-old official works nearly 10 hours in a daytime shift at the checkpoint, asking drivers for licenses and turning back those who are not on essential journeys.

"I usually stop at least 150 vehicles between 6 a.m. and 4 p.m. It is a huge but essential task," he said. "I am doing my part."

The island reported 820 new COVID-19 cases and five more related deaths on Sunday, taking the national caseload to 32,831 and the nationwide death toll to 238.

Of all new cases reported in the Caribbean nation, 378 were from Havana, the country's epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak.

Under the new rules, emergency vehicles, cargo lorries and trucks transporting food are allowed to enter the Cuban capital.

Also, people with special permission and those heading to Havana for medical or compassionate reasons remain exempt, according to local authorities.

Provincial teams, including health workers, have been stationed at 14 checkpoints placed on borders between the capital and the rest of the country.

Ernudis Cartada, a 40-year-old doctor from Havana's Cotorro district, conducts temperature checks and tries to detect COVID-19 symptoms among people entering the Cuban capital.

"Although a considerable part of people who test positive for COVID-19 are asymptomatic carriers, checkpoints are fundamental to reducing transmission of the virus," he said.

People allowed to pass through the checkpoints are advised to follow cleaning and disinfecting protocols while staying in the country's most populous city.

Among them is Yordany Ramirez, a 36-year-old truck driver from the central province of Villa Clara, who transports vegetables and other produce to a farmers' market in Havana.

"I want to come back home safe and sound," he said. "COVID-19 checkpoints very much help prevent transmission of the virus nationwide." Enditem