The government of Dominica has taken a decision to install standpipes in the city of Roseau to help in its fight against the dreadful Coronavirus (COVID-19).
In making the announcement at a press conference on Thursday, Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit said the primary interest of his government is the safety and welfare of its citizens.
“The government has taken the decision to reinstate standpipes around the City,” he said. “So the mandate is that we need a standpipe around the market, every bus stop and what we will be doing, we will be putting standpipe attendants…with soap, towels who will encourage people to wash their hands because as we have been told, personal hygiene is first and foremost in our fight.”
According to Prime Minister Skerrit, those attendants will receive training from the health officials, “so they themselves are aware.”
He explained further that the attendants will have demonstrations on how people should wash their hands properly.
“We are hoping that we can encourage people to do that,” he stated.
The Prime Minister commended the nurses and other health officials for their hard work and effort in the Coronavirus fight.
this is such a stupid idea. did anyone give any thought to that dicision. where is the dispensing soap machine? on what are hand wiped? clothes. this is spreading the virus because people have a false sense of washing their hands when hands are becoming more filthy.
How does someone close the faucet? is it left running forever?
I was in Dominica and there was not one meeting by the health committee in my village. people still gather in the rum shop or by the bay playing Domino. I was bothered by that. probably not a meeting where people are gathered but passing on a vehicle informing villagers as to their behavior at this time. I am really concerned and realize that in a community this can spread like wild fire. Health committee should take the responsibility for informing villagers. keeping them on their toes.
Some explanations:
No hand sanitizer is needed if washing your hands properly.
No antibacterial soap is needed if washing your hands properly. Normal liquid soap suffices.
Although other taps would make it easier, closing the tap with the provided (paper) towels is fine.
No soap or no single-use towels will make these standpipes useless or even dangerous.
If we really must temporarily go back to Stand pipes, this should be at a small cost and should be shut off by a certain time. It is NOT to make money. 25c will not be too much. RULES: Many of our people waste water and do not appreciate its value…that’s why the pipes were removed in the first place. As this is anemergency, short term action, the pipes should be only at strategic locations and the attendant will provide liquid soap from the relevant Ministry project budget. NEPs can be used to attend and monitor by rotation.. 8-5p.m. Ethiopia and Zambia have a similar system with attendants. He/she alone will touch the pipe head, spray the head if needed with antiseptic etc.. unless there is an automatic pipe option. PLEASE walk with your tissue to wipe your hands.. No human or car/Bus baths.
Those stand pipes needs to be managed properly or else it Will contribute in spreading the virus faster with all those vagrants (parrows) around the city plus people will start washing there buses there it will be confusion with these stand pipes if they are not managed properly,while its an excellent move but I thought I would be installed in a toilet cubicle with a person outside the door to instruct you in.
We need sensor piges and soap dispensers and papir towel so We do not take the germs with US again.
It will help keep our hands clean, our vagrants will bathe and vehicles will wash just like old times
bad idea. We should promote personal hygiene. Stand pipes were removed because they were non hygienic to start with. The conditions are re-instated again?
ou pas feb! Why all the fear? do you know facts? Do you know that China has contained the Pandemium. USA is shamed again. Cuba took in the ship that all turned down. Cuba has the best medical system in the world i tell you. that is a fact. They were not afraid but helped those with the virus. Ask the media about the population of China .. Billions. What is this figue compared to the population say of Wuhan. Media creating frenzy and fear. Why fear? God is in control. Do you think that all those alcohol based things are better than plain soap and water. Use Bread and contaminate various pieces with dirty hands; hands cleaned with sanitizer and another with clean washed soap and water. Store the various pieces in a separate clean zip locked back. Check the results … Come back DNO to comment
boi this is jus so much bs
what pipes really gonna do
if the world cant fight it stand pipes will?
they need to send ppl home n insure them they will be paid this aint hv nun to do with being lazy but this will decrease the spread and social interactions or at least close down schools n then jobs later
Motion sensor standpipe with motion sensor soap, yes. Anything else makes no sense. Hope there are enough standpipes that it doesn’t create a handwashing line less than 6 feet apart. 😏
What passes from hand to hand more than anything else is the change in your pocket and the bank notes in your purse. I doubt that even the new polymer bank notes can be washed and sanitized.
I hope the towels are disposable paper towel, otherwise cloth towels may be an agent to spread the virus.
I like this proactive approach. Just one observation I have. I have been up-close to the construction/installation particularly on Kennedy Avenue and my issue is the type of tap. I believe it should have been the ‘Paddle-type’ tap that a person could open and close with your elbow instead of the standard ‘twist-type’ tap they’re installing now.
exactly you recontaminating your hand when you go to close the tap
Great initiative but I am hoping that these standpipes are censor/motion operated to avoid all hand contact. Otherwise stand-pipe attendants may have to wipe pipe heads frequently.
This does not appear to be pragmatic. But if the investment is small, no harm no foul.
But the deceiver keeps confusing me you know. If we have NO coronavirus in Dominica then our priority should be to keep it this way. Therefore keeping our ports safe should be our priority. So we should see more of that initiative at our airports and seaports. I visited both Melville hall and Cainfield airports this week and the waters hardly flow and hardly any soap to wash your hands. So I just don’t believe anything that deceiver says. He should go to all our schools and make sure there is running water and soap and even pipe attendants to wash the children hands.
There was no hand soap or hand sanitizer last I was at the airport. Hmmm.
I think it’s a great idea. And if the government could make it mandatory that business places would install hand sanitizers for customer use would be even better.
“what we will be doing, we will be putting standpipe attendants…with soap, towels who will encourage people to wash their hands because as we have been told, personal hygiene is first and foremost in our fight.”
Nothing is said about if pipe heads in particular will be disinfected after each use and if standpipe attendants will be present 24/7, to ensure vagrants don’t use it when people are asleep. If preventive measures are not taken that will be like spreading gas on a fire that looked dead.
I don’t believe this has nothing to do with Coronavirus. It looks more like a move to make Melissa Skerrit look like the person that gets things done because it was Skerrit that allowed Roseau streets to get so bad with bad holes and it was he that closed down standing pipes. So 3 months since the elections they resurfaced the road and now reinstated standing pipes. What next Skerrit? You are just a good pretender
Let’s Pretend Vagrants are people too. They have to be encouraged to wash too. Stop judging people on the outside. God sees the inside. Shouldn’t they be protected too? You would be surprised how some non vagrants do not wash their hands and practice good hygiene. Look at some persons how they keep their home and surroundings (they are not vagrants). Vagrants most do have a mental problem but I can tell you they are nicer than many of you who are not vagrants. You Let’s Pretend go volunteer to be a night attendant but mind you encurage the vagrants to wash too. I look forward to see u in your new job. Learn to be nice to them for you know not what tomorrow may bring. Stop this thinking of me, myself and I. If u do not show others how to be clean to avoid contracting, then you , yourself and you run a higher risk to get the virus. Go and be nice to others.
who build that wall nuh it crooked xD
Let’s see magic happen… stand pipes will reduce the spread of the coronavirus if it reaches our borders by 30%. Controlling children at school will reduce it by another 20%. And being 80% prepared at the hospital which sends 90%of critical cases to neighboring islands, will reduce the spread by yet another 20%. So if anyone in Dominica gets infected, and if for some unknown reason (because we are so prepared) we can’t contain the virus, people of Dominica will continue working and they will not request leave to care for loved ones. So the very thing our government thinks he can prevent, will eventually happen whether or not he can predict it. Good luck my PM….
Before Dominica became independent most of Dominican household used standpipes and wash in the rivers, there were standpipes from Scott’s head to Portsmouth, after independence this was illuminated by placing water in every household giving Dominican a higher and better level of life.
It is obvious that this government has no intention of improving the lives of Dominican. In such a crisis it would in the best interest of shutting down the country to protect the nation.
Yet the only solution they could come up with is a standpipes. We are not in 1492 we are in 2020.
If you doing that only in Roseau that will defeat the purpose.
What about other densely populated villages?
De government was boasting about million of dollars in reserves…..yet nothing to show.
Did someone lie to us?
@dissident: When you say densely populated, you are saying that the people live close to each other, is it necessary to install a water pipe between two houses, where water is available in those people’s homes?
Water Pipes needs to be available in the City because people come from all of those villages to do their businesses there. It is a good thing to have water available to everyone who needs to wash their hands in City, why should there always be some form of negative contention?
It would only be a good idea if a NEP worker is present 24/7 to ensure tap heads are disinfected after each use and hand sanitizer is made available to users. Otherwise it’s more of the same old same old
Same old same old Hand sanitizer? Why not say soap and water since sanitizer is used when u do not have water /soap close by. But Soap and water is the best.
In this place we are much to much political….every tiny thg is turned political…great place of negative people….
NEP workers don’t work. They only get paid for doing nothing. One condition only: they need to have the correct party book or the Skerrit Bible.
It sounds good on surface but will that not help spread the virus? Here are some concerns: 1. The pipe heads will have to be constantly opened and closed by people and we don’t know who has the virus. 2. Water alone will not kill virus 3. Will antibacterial soaps or gel made available? 4. Will persons not feel that because they washed their hands they automatically disinfected their hands and feel comfortable to touch their eyes, face, nose and even others? I will not even refer to Paris that will just not use soaps. So yes on surface sounds like a good idea but in reality I think it raises the threat. Maybe more of a political idea than health
Partner all that good but GO to the parliament and make the necessary allocations to do more. STOP playing like is you that have all the answers to this pandemic. Mahaut Bus Drivers are leading the effort so far but for us to keep ducking the corona we must evolve as more information comes out. What measures are we taking at the prisons? What about police HQ that is filled with you promiscuous men and women? What are the government directives to hotels? What about the vendors at the market and who is monitoring them?
If we keep playing politics with this like trump did when he said “only 14 cases and will soon go away” then its only a matter of time. I myself already monitoring the ports and airport because as soon as I see Princess Gravitate and the kids leaving then off I go because that is my signal. God help us all.
I thought y’all said no covid 19.why do we need stand pipes again???
Prevention is better than cure, and its called “Cut your leaves before it rains”, in other words be prepared.
However, a lot more needs to be done than installing standpipes. Preventing the virus from being transported here for example, are our hospitals ready with ADEQUATE equipment and qualified staff? Do we have ADEQUATE ISOLATION FACILITIES AND EQUIPMENT?
This involves so much and we just seem to be having tunnel vision.