MANILA, Philippines – From the ice track to the frontlines. 

Members of the Philippine National Bobsled Luge and Skeleton Association (PNBLSA) are currently helping combat the coronavirus crisis in the country as frontliners. 

Bobsledders Raymond Morales, Eugene Etrata, Rowell Quilla, and Rey Rubo Fernandez – who are all active duty personnel of the Philippine Coast Guard – have been deployed to enforce the enhanced community quarantine.

“It warms my heart as a Filipino to serve your country without asking for something in return,” said Fernandez in Filipino in a video relayed to Rappler. 

“We are doing this because we want to and because this is what we vowed to do for our jobs – to serve the nation in times of crisis that not only our country is facing but also the entire world,” he added. 

The bobsledders man sea and riverine ports, passenger embarkation and disembarkation points, floating vessels, coastal communities, and maritime areas all over the country. 

Also, they are tasked to increase awareness on ways to prevent contracting the virus. 

“Being a frontliner is not an easy job. You have to have patience and you need to adjust to the people you deal with,” said Fernandez, who is assigned at the Coast Guard station in Manila and Pasay. 

Although they take pride in their service to the country, it cannot be denied that their jobs are dangerous and may at times turn out deadly. 

“We become prone to diseases because we don’t know who are the carrier and the infected,” said Fernandez.

“It worries me more for the family I go home to because I don’t know if I’ve become a carrier and I just don’t show symptoms.” 

PNBLSA president Buddy Cunanan said he hopes that his wards stay healthy throughout their duty as frontliners so they can resume their quest of qualifying for the 2022 Winter Olympics.

“[The coronavirus] is an unseen enemy and one that requires a different set of skills to defeat,” Cunanan said. “I told them, ‘Do your service but take care of yourselves because we still have a lot to do.'”

Fernandez called on Filipinos to avoid being stubborn and to observe proper precautions to curb the spread of the coronavirus. 

“I hope that COVID-19 disappears and a vaccine for it will be develop so that the flow and system of our country return to normal and that we can go home to our families,” Fernandez said. – Rappler.com