Residents of Axochiapan, Morelos, protested outside a hospital in the city to demand that the facility not accept any patients infected with Covid-19, threatening to burn the building down if it did.

Around 150 citizens gathered outside the Dr. Ángel Ventura Neri hospital, protesting on the grounds that they believe the hospital is underprepared to handle even its normal daily caseload, let alone an outbreak of Covid-19.

“Here the only thing that interests us is that the hospital knows plainly that we don’t want them to bring anybody [with Covid-19], and if they’re going to ruin everything then yes, we’re going to have problems,” said one man.

“We’ll burn [the hospital] down. If they don’t have the capacity to attend to the few who are already here, … do you think that they’re going to be able to deal with a crisis? It’s laughable,” said a woman in the crowd.

Another protester suggested they make Molotov cocktails to throw into the hospital and force the medical staff to evacuate.

“Why would we want a fucking hospital full of sick people? … The doctors already said they don’t have the capacity to treat these people, and we are being responsible by saying that if someone [with Covid-19] comes, we’re going to act,” said another.

The Morelos Health Ministry reported on Tuesday evening that there were seven confirmed cases of Covid-19 and one death from the disease in the state. Health officials there ruled out 72 other patients and still had 31 suspicious cases they were investigating.

State Health Minister Marco Antonio Cantú Cuevas said that the newest case in Morelos is a 37-year-old male from the southwestern part of the state who recently traveled to the United States.

Cantú urged citizens to respect people’s right to confidentiality and not to spread rumors or fake news that could alarm others.

Their response may border on panic, but the citizens of Axochiapan aren’t the only ones worried about their hospital’s capacity to confront the virus.

Hospital staff in nine México state municipalities protested on Monday to demand supplies to treat patients infected with Covid-19 and protect themselves from the deadly respiratory disease.

Source: El Universal (sp)