The hysterical movement of people from Accra, Tema, Kumasi and Obuasi into other parts of the country has sent shivers through some towns who are certain they have become sitting ducks.
The mass exodus was sparked by the Friday night announcement that towns and cities forming the epicentre of Covid-19 outbreak in Ghana will be locked down for two weeks from Monday, March 30, 2020.
By Saturday, bus stations were chocked with citizens scrambling to escape the lockdown net as public health experts warn that this was a disaster waiting to happen because of the high probability of these travellers spreading the highly contagious disease into the interiors of the country.
Municipalities like the Hohoe Municipality are already taking matters up. The local government issued a statement warning that all travellers arriving from the Covid-19 epicentres would be subjected to mandatory quarantine.
“All individuals arriving from Accra, Kumasi, Tema are required to mandatorily quarantine themselves for 2 weeks. If you develop symptoms such as cough, fever, sore throat, sneezing kindly call the hospital helpline for your sample to be taken at home. We need families in Hohoe to help us enforce this directive,” read a statement issued by the Hohoe Municipality.
It went further to warn drivers conveying these suspect passengers note their data for easy tracing. “All drivers and station masters from areas with confirmed cases such as Accra, Tema, Kumasi, Obuasi … must take the name, contact number and traceable addresses…of all passengers boarding their car. This will allow easy contact tracing to contain the disease.”
Experts have warned that smaller towns and rural areas may not be equipped to handle the potential outbreak from the big cities.
Already, more than 2000 people have been tested for Covid-19 with 152 of them confirmed (approximately 5.6%). It is estimated that some 1000 more may be walking around who may have been in contact with the infected patients.