The government opened its cold-weather shelter located at Block 4 of the Ilha Verde Building yesterday as the observatory has issued a Yellow cold weather alert.
The Ilha Verde Building is a subsidised home-ownership scheme (HOS) estate in the Ilha Verde district.
According to the website of the Meteorological and Geophysical Bureau (SMG), the weather station has forecast that the city’s temperature will range between 9 and 14 degrees Celsius today, while the temperature is forecast to be from 9 to 15 degrees Celsius tomorrow. The observatory has forecast that the city’s weather would become more amenable from Wednesday.
The observatory has a two-level alert system for cold weather: “Yellow” for “cold” and “Orange” for “very cold” weather. The government’s cold-weather shelter opens when at least the Yellow warning has been issued.
A statement by the Social Welfare Bureau (IAS) yesterday said that the cold-weather shelter will continue operating until the weather becomes warmer.
Yesterday’s IAS statement said that those entering the cold-weather shelter are required to display a negative COVID-19 result of a rapid antigen test (aka self-test) carried out on the same day.
The statement also said that those using the shelter are required to comply with various COVID-19 prevention measures, such as wearing a facemask, having their temperature checked, and adhering to social distancing of at least one metre.
Those who have come down with respiratory symptoms such as a fever, a sore throat and a cough should seek medical treatment first before they are allowed to stay at the cold-weather shelter, the statement said.
The stay at the shelter, complete with warm food and drinks, is free of charge.
This file photo released from the Social Welfare Bureau (IAS) last year shows the cold-weather shelter in Ilha Verde district.
