SAN JOSE, Antique – The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) assured it will closely coordinate with the provincial government for incoming flights at the Antique Aiport in this capital town.
This came after Gov. Rhodora Cadiao asked CAAP regional area manager Efren Nagrama to explain why an air ambulance landed at the airport on July 28 without prior coordination with the provincial government.
“There was a medevac (medical evacuation) from Cuyo, Palawan because the patient needed emergency treatment,” Nagrama said during the meeting of the Antique Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) on coronavirus disease 2019 and the League of Municipalities in the Philippines (LMP) Antique Chapter at the Binirayan Gymnasium here last week.
According to Nagrama, medevac is exempted from suspension of flights by the CAAP and IATF.
Integrated Provincial Health Officer I Dr. Leoncio Abiera Jr., who was also present during the meeting, said the 47-year-old patient is a resident of Bugasong town in this province who has a business in Cuyo. The patient coordinated with the local government unit (LGU) about his arrival at the Antique airport.
The Bugasong LGU, however, did not inform the governor nor sent an ambulance to fetch the patient at the airport.
“I took the risk to accept the patient who was admitted at the Antique Medical Center because of tonsillectomy,” Abiera said.
Cadiao, for her part, said she did not even have the knowledge that time about the patient and how many companions he had on the medevac.
“We could have even sent an ambulance to fetch the patient if we were informed earlier about his arrival,” the governor added.
She pointed out it was already the second time the incident happened.
“The first one was a private plane from Tacloban on May 15,” Cadiao said.
Onboard that plane during the first one was the assistant district engineer of the Department of Public Works and Highways assigned in the city. (With a report from PNA/PN)
