As part of the country’s efforts to fight the coronavirus (COVID-19) epidemic, the Ministry of Aviation (MoA) and Ghana Airports Company Limited (GACL), in collaboration with Zoomlion Ghana Limited (ZGL) on Monday evening undertook the third phase of disinfection exercise at the Kotoka International Airport (KIA).

The two-hour exercise, which was carried out from 9:30 p.m., to 11:30 p.m., covered facilities at Terminal One and Two and all its open spaces.

They included restaurants, washrooms, arrival and departure halls and tarmac among others.

Briefing

Briefing journalists earlier, the General Manager (GM) of Vector Control Services of Zoomlion Ghana Limited (ZGL), Reverend Ebenezer Kwame Addae, said the exercise was to augment the quarterly disinfections at the country’s airports and keep them safe for users.

“We are carrying out these regular disinfection exercises at the country’s airports to keep them safe from the COVID-19, and also repose confidence in passengers travelling in and outside the country,” he said.

On why the disinfection was done in the evening, he explained that it was to avoid interruptions in the activities of the airport authorities.

Reality

According to Rev. Addae, COVID-19 was real, and that there was no need for the country to lose its guard in its quest to the fight against this invisible enemy.

“Any complacency in the fight against the virus will cost the nation. And that is something we must strongly guard against,” he urged.

In addition to the quarterly disinfection, he said the airport authorities at KIA also had a programme where they do dusting and disinfection on a daily basis.

“They also strictly enforce all the COVID-19 protocols at the airport,” he added.

Approach

He indicated that all these were part of an integrated approach employed by his outfit and the government to match the virus “boot for boot.”

Rev. Addae, however, disclosed that KIA Terminal 3 which dealt with international flights would take its turn of the disinfection on midnight of Wednesday, December 16, 2020.

“We will be doing Terminal 3 on Wednesday, [December 16, 2020] at 12 midnight, which time will allow us space to disinfect all its facilities,” he said.

Equipment

Disinfection equipment deployed for the exercise included loads of knapsack sprayers, three foggers, two mechanical sweepers and one atomiser.

It will be recalled that the third phase of airport disinfection began on Friday, December 11, 2020 at the Kumasi Airport.