All travelers ... will be quarantined ... starting Wednesday

[kadioguy]

Taipei, Aug. 9 (CNA) All travelers arriving from the Philippines will be quarantined at official quarantine locations starting Wednesday, due to the rising number of imported COVID-19 cases from the country, including a new case on Sunday, according to the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC).

https://focustaiwan.tw/society/202008090009
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Grammatically, I think that there should be a comma before "starting Wednesday". I take it to mean:

All travelers arriving from the Philippines will be quarantined at official quarantine locations, which starts Wednesday.
↓
All travelers arriving from the Philippines will be quarantined at official quarantine locations, starting Wednesday.

However, I have got so many hits like this use on the Internet. It seems that no comma before "starting" is widely acceptable and used. What do you think?

 

[Rover_KE]

Omitting the comma is fine by me.

 

[kadioguy]

That is incorrect. The relative pronoun has no antecedent.

I used it as follows:

which
used, after a comma in writing, to add more information about the thing, situation, or event you have just mentioned

One of the boys kept laughing, which annoyed Jane intensely.

https://www.ldoceonline.com/dictionary/which

 

[tedmc]

It is not clear what starts on Wednesday, unlike in your last example.

 

[kadioguy]

It is not clear what starts on Wednesday, unlike in your last example.

Then what do you think is the subject of "starting" in the original? Doesn't it mean this?

This measure (= All travelers arriving from the Philippines will be quarantined at official quarantine locations) starts Wednesday.

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I found an example with a comma before "starting", and I think that it could support my opinions in post #1 and #4.

You have two hours to complete the test, starting now.

https://www.ldoceonline.com/dictionary/start

 

[tedmc]

This measure (= All travelers arriving from the Philippines will be quarantined at official quarantine locations) starts Wednesday.

Quarantine is a verb in the main clause and not the subject or object. It is not immediately obvious that the quarantining will start on Wednesday.

Unless you say: Quarantine will be imposed on all travellers arriving from the Phillippines at official locations, which starts Wednesday.

 

[kadioguy]

Quarantine is a verb in the main clause and not the subject or object. It is not immediately obvious that the quarantining will start on Wednesday.

Unless you say: Quarantine will be imposed on all travellers arriving from the Phillippines at official locations, which starts Wednesday.

Thank you for the reply.

So could you tell me why "start" is in the "-ing" form in the original? How can we work it out?

All travelers arriving from the Philippines will be quarantined at official quarantine locations starting Wednesday.

 

[tedmc]

It is a participle.

You can also have it at the beginning of the sentence:

Starting Wednesday, all travelers arriving from the Philippines will be quarantined at official quarantine locations.

 

[kadioguy]

It is a participle.

You can also have it at the beginning of the sentence:

Starting Wednesday, all travelers arriving from the Philippines will be quarantined at official quarantine locations.

But grammatically, why is this participle used? I mean, for example,

I am sitting in the living room watching TV.

In this sentence we can take it to mean:

I am sitting in the living room and I am watching TV.
↓
I am sitting in the living room watching TV.

So how can we analyze the "starting" in the original (by) using this kind of way?

PS the green part is another way to analyze why a "-ing" form is used.

 

[tedmc]

It modifies the quarantining which you were not clear about.

 

[kadioguy]

It modifies the quarantining which you were not clear about.

This is a special use to me, because the word quarantining doesn't actually appear in the sentence. :-?

 

[kadioguy]

How about this way?

All travelers arriving from the Philippines will be quarantined at official quarantine locations and this starts (from) Wednesday.
↓
All travelers arriving from the Philippines will be quarantined at official quarantine locations starting (from) Wednesday.

 

[tedmc]

They are okay, but I feel the starting date being the key point should be put in front.

 

[kadioguy]

How about this way?

All travelers arriving from the Philippines will be quarantined at official quarantine locations and this starts (from) Wednesday.

I take "this" to refer to "All travelers arriving from the Philippines will be quarantined at official quarantine locations".

Am I right?

 

[emsr2d2]

I take "this" to refer to "All travelers arriving from the Philippines will be quarantined at official quarantine locations".

Am I right?

Well, yes, but it would be easier to describe "this" as referring to "the new rule we just mentioned".

 

[kadioguy]

Could I ask the last question, please?

a. All travelers arriving from the Philippines will be quarantined at official quarantine locations, which starts Wednesday.

b. All travelers arriving from the Philippines will be quarantined at official quarantine locations and this starts Wednesday.

To me, (a) and (b) seems to mean the same thing. However, there is a different opinion in post #5.

What do you think?

 

[emsr2d2]

As you were told before, "which" has no antecedent in #1. You could use it in something like:

The quarantining of all arrivals from the Philippines, which starts [on] Wednesday, has come as a shock to many travellers.

The antecedent of "which" here needs to be a noun - in this case it's "the quarantining". The sentence goes on to explain who it affects. "The quarantining of all arrivals from the Philippines, which ..." could be reworded as "The requirement for all passengers arriving from the Philippines to quarantine, which ...". Here, the noun is "The requirement", and the sentence goes on to explain what requirement.