Coronavirus: Out of quarantine arises gratitude

Within hours of the aircraft touching the tarmac, Singaporean Joshua Koh and his family were taken from Changi Airport to a place they had not heard of and where they had to stay for two weeks.

"Nacli? We had no idea what it was or where it was," recalled Mr Koh, 47, who returned three months ago from Hubei, China, with his wife and children on a specially arranged flight on Feb 9.

The Kohs were initially disappointed that they were not staying at a chalet in Loyang where lodgings had kitchens and bedrooms.

It was where some Singapore residents, who had returned from Hubei earlier on a special flight as well, had stayed, they had learnt.

Mr Sohaib Sajit, 33, who had visited his wife's hometown village in Hubei with their two children, had also not heard of the National Community Leadership Institute (Nacli), the training arm of the People's Association (PA).

"I googled it, and it said South Buona Vista. When we reached it, I thought, this is quite quiet and 'ulu' (remote)," said Mr Sohaib, a permanent resident from Pakistan who has been living here for 10 years.

But the families' initial anxiety was quickly put to rest. Mr Koh said: "We were touched by how polite and helpful the staff were. No one was frustrated, everyone was patient."

Mr Sohaib, a manager at a semi-conductor firm, said there was some anxiety when his family had to split up - he and his then two-year-old son in one room, and his wife and their daughter, five, in another. But the sight of toys in their room immediately cheered up his son.

"The staff were very thoughtful. Every now and then, there would be a pleasant surprise from them, like reading material for me and my wife or toys for the kids," he said.

Impressed by how smoothly things went, Mr Sohaib was surprised to find out later that it was the first time Nacli was being used to quarantine people.

Dr Zarina Ismail, Nacli's vice-dean of training administration and operations, told The Straits Times the campus was given just 48 hours from Jan 29 to transform itself into a quarantine facility. It received help from agencies such as the Singapore Police Force and National Development Ministry.

It had to prepare a quarantine zone in the campus with 32 rooms, with two people to a room on average. At the same time, it had to maintain its daily business, including virtual training programmes.

As of April 30, Nacli has housed a total of 123 people on quarantine since it became a quarantine site on Jan 31, a PA spokesman said.

Dr Zarina said: "We got information on the families a day before they arrived. Quite a few have young children, who would be restless and anxious, especially coming straight from the airport."

So her team brainstormed ideas to make the rooms more colourful, with posters and books to keep young children engaged.

A surprise highlight for both the Koh and Sohaib families happened on Feb 14. Neither had expected Valentine's Day to be particularly fun while on quarantine. But the staff surprised them with a special dinner, complete with roses, napkins, sparkling juice and chocolates - and spaghetti for the children.

Mr Sohaib said: "I video-called my wife in the other room, we couldn't believe it!"

For the Kohs, their stay at Nacli was a breeze, said Mr Koh, after their 17-day quarantine in Wuhan, then the coronavirus epicentre and put under lockdown from Jan 23.

The couple had lived there for six years, with both employed as administrators at an international school.

Mrs Koh, 44, said: "When we came back to Singapore, we knew there were systems and people in place, and we would be taken care of."

Both families are so grateful that they have been paying it forward by volunteering at community centres since their quarantine ended on Feb 23. Mr Koh and his family helped to package and distribute hand sanitiser for residents in Sengkang, while Mr Sohaib's family did so in Woodlands and also sewed and distributed masks.

For the current holy month of Ramadan, Mr Sohaib and his family have also been helping to distribute food in Woodlands.

Added Mrs Koh: "From the moment we reached Singapore, we have been blessed by what has been done, so this is just a small part of what we can do to give back."