Albiol says tuberculosis cases won't stop the eviction of the occupied school.
The Health Department says there is no risk of spread and emphasizes that those affected have begun treatment and are not contagious.
BarcelonaThe former B9 secondary school, occupied since June 2023 by more than 400 people, remains in the sights of Badalona Mayor Xavier García Albiol, who this Friday reiterated his commitment to vacating it as soon as possible. The news of the detection of nine cases of tuberculosis among the people living in this former educational center had called into question this possibility, which was supported by the courts – although no execution date has yet been set – which has led Albiol to consider confining the occupants. sine die to prevent a potential uncontrolled spread of the infection. Finally, the Department of Health has ruled out this risk, arguing that those affected are already receiving treatment. Albiol has stated, in a video on his social media, that he will continue with his plans and do everything possible to permanently close the B9, which he has long described as problematic.
According to his latest developments, The Newspaper And government sources have confirmed that the Department of Health has detected at least nine cases of tuberculosis in the last two years among residents of the occupied infrastructure, located on the border between Badalona and Sant Adrià de Besòs. The regional ministry states that several people – most of them in an irregular situation – who arrived at B9 in the summer of 2023 were already positive for the disease and that the others would have been infected within this occupied infrastructure since June 2023, as a result of living together.
However, the regional ministry denies that it can be called an outbreak, since this technical concept encompasses a greater number of infections that have occurred in the same space and time, and assures that they are monitoring all cases to ensure they receive antibiotic treatment. "The Health Minister has explained to me that the specific cases that have occurred are under control and that there is no risk of contagion and, therefore, unemployment at the former B9 institute will continue as expected," Albiol stressed.
The council has been demanding the eviction of B9 through the courts for two years, which would be the largest action of its kind ever carried out in Catalonia, according to Albiol. Until now, the mayor has referred to the former institute as a hotbed of problems, drug trafficking and prostitution, and in August he again publicly demanded the dismantling of this center, just after a deadly fight inside the facilitiesSince 2023, the City Council has completed thirteen administrative and judicial procedures to vacate the space. Although the courts have authorized the eviction, it has never materialized.
Albiol attacks the Generalitat
This Friday, Albiol expressed surprise that this information was being made public just as the eviction process was nearing its end, and called the Department of Health "irresponsible" for not notifying the city council of these cases earlier. "I find it very surprising that the Department of Health confirms that there is tuberculosis in a municipal building that has been occupied for two years, which appears to have started in 2023 by some occupants, and that the City Council has not heard anything," he denounced. "The City Council and the Municipal Hospital of Barcelona have not been informed of any contagious cases, the most recent being this August," he lamented.
For his part, the Deputy Director of Surveillance and Emergency Response for Public Health of Catalonia, Jacobo Mendioroz, explained that there is no cause for alarm. "If we had thought there really was a risk to the population, we would have done so [communicated the situation]," he stressed. Thus, he insisted that residents in the area should not take any preventive measures. "Tuberculosis is not like COVID; contact of a few hours in a closed space is necessary for there to be a risk of transmission," he explained.
The first case was detected in November 2023, according to Mendioroz, and involved a person who said they "temporarily resided" at the former B9 institute in Badalona. The Deputy Director of Surveillance and Emergency Response at Public Health emphasized that the infection did not necessarily have to have occurred in this space and that latent screenings have been carried out, and no further cases have been detected, apart from these ten. He also stated that all contacts and people who were close to the infected individuals have been informed about possible symptoms, how tuberculosis is transmitted, and the corresponding tests. In a media address, Mendioroz noted that the situation is "fairly under control," but not "overwhelmed," as symptoms could manifest in "months or years."
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