ICTSI beefs up port security to bar entry of bird flu virus

Port operator International Container Terminal Services, Inc. (ICTSI) has beefed up its security measures to prevent the avian influenza virus or bird flu from entering the country.

ICTSI said it has intensified efforts to protect its flagship Manila International Container Terminal (MICT) from the outbreak of bird flu.

While the country is still safe from bird flu, ICTSI said it has tightened security at the MICT, being a transit point for international containers, especially for vessels coming from countries with reported bird flu outbreaks.

Vessels coming from these countries are only allowed up to the Manila Bay basin area. A quarantine team then ferries to the vessel and conducts medical examinations onboard.

ICTSI senior vice president and MICT general manager Francis Andrews said the company is closely coordinating with the Health Department’s Bureau of Quarantine to ensure that the MICT is safe from bird flu. "Since the MICT is an international transit point, we have to be sure that our terminal is safe and clear from transmission," Andrews said.

Quarantine officials have provided ICTSI the implementing guidelines on how to prevent the spread of bird flu as well as standard procedures in case of an outbreak. Similar with the preventive measures when SARS hit the region two years ago, no foreign vessels coming from or which passed through countries with reported outbreaks are allowed to berth at the MICT until health officials declare the vessel and its crew bird flu-free.

MICT’s Safety Unit is tasked to strictly implement the quarantine procedures as well as monitor the occupational health situation in the terminal.

Aside from the Philippines, only Singapore and Brunei remains free from the spread of bird flu.

ICTSI is one of the pioneers of container terminal management and operation on an international basis having been involved in this activity since the early 1990s.

It is widely acknowledged as a leading developer in the sector, specializing in container terminals and maintaining an international management team with unrivalled expertise.

ICTSI also handles the operations of Baltic Container Terminal in Poland and Tecon Suape SA in Brazil. Last month, it took over the operation of port facilities at Toamasina, Madagascar.