MANILA– Manila Zoo reopened to the public on Wednesday, after almost 3 years since a closure order was issued for supposedly polluting Manila Bay.

Manila Mayor Isko Moreno Domagoso was joined by other city officials in the event which allowed limited number of people inside the facility for health and safety reasons related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

He said the 5-hectare facility can originally accommodate 16,000 people. But the mayor said that because of the pandemic, only 1,000 people will be given free entrance at Manila Zoo.

“Mga lolo’t lola ko, mga senior citizen, yung apo ninyo pwede nyo nang ipasyal dito, tapos may bakuna pa. So two birds in one stone,” Domagoso said in an interview Wednesday morning.

(You can tour the elderly and the children here. There's also a COVID-19 vaccination so you are hitting 2 birds in one stone.)

The zoo will be open until Jan. 31, he said. By then, local officials would look into changing the protocols.

“We will see kung gaano mangyari, then we can make it bigger in terms of numbers and foot traffic, para nang sa ganun, maiwasan pa din natin yung pagsasama-sama na hindi masyado naayos,” said the Mayor of the nation’s capital.

(We will see what will happen next, then we can make it bigger in terms of numbers and foot traffic so we can prevent the crowding.)

The city government has also used the facility as a COVID-19 vaccination site for minors aged 11 to 17, as well as senior citizens.

• READ: How a student thesis and P1.7 billion transformed the Manila Zoo

Domagoso said access to vaccine can be coursed onsite for enrolled visitors or via www.manilacivod19vaccine.ph. The move is part of the city government’s effort to expand the population’s access to vaccine.

“Mayroon silang (they have) health center, school, malls, tapos yung ating drive thru sa 2-wheel dun sa Kartilya, tapos yung 24/7 na booster caravan drive thru sa Luneta, tapos ito sa Manila Zoo,” he said.

It was on Jan. 21, 2019 when then-Mayor Joseph “Erap” Estrada issued a one-page memorandum for the indefinite closure of Manila Zoo, after the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) tagged Manila Zoo as one of Manila Bay’s pollutants.

TOURISTS

A family of 4 from the town of Angono in Rizal province were among the first visitors of the zoo’s opening Wednesday.

Candy Reyes said the Manila Zoo showed big improvement.

“Ang ganda na niya ngayon. Kasi nung huli kong nagpunta dito ang liit ko pa, ang laki ko na ngayon. As in sobrang ganda ng improvement niya," she said.

(It is so beautiful now. I was still young when I last came here. There was great improvement.)

• READ: Isko: Manila Zoo to open with limited capacity; COVID-19 vaccinations available

She said she was happy over the accommodation, noting that they made the right decision to be among first tourists to see the reopening of the zoo.

“Nakalaboy na, at the same time, nakapabakuna pa," Reyes added.

(We were able to tour and get vaccinated at the same time.)

Reservation for slots at Manila can be accessed via www.manilazoo.ph.

Domagoso said as of 8 a.m. earlier, the website received 6,300 reservations.