TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A health official in Taiwan on Friday (Aug. 20) defended the country’s tough measures for management of centralized COVID-19 quarantine centers, citing incidents where narcotics have been found.

Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) official Wang Pi-sheng (王必勝) said in a Facebook post that strict baggage inspections for those isolated at the 48 government-run facilities are necessary as contraband is seized on a regular basis.

On Thursday (Aug. 19) alone, there were two cases where goods brought in by families and friends of the quarantined were found to include concealed drugs. In some cases, visitors have attempted to smuggle drug-laced instant coffee and substances hidden in packets of wet wipes for the tenants, wrote CNA.

Lighters are also among the impounded items, according to Wang, who stressed the need to vet the belongings of the people put under quarantine for public safety and overall management reasons.

To keep highly-transmissible COVID variants such as Delta at bay, Taiwan requires all arrivals to quarantine at COVID hotels or designated facilities. Those who have a travel history to high-risk countries must isolate at a centralized facility.