Majority of the local government employees of Igbaras have had close contacts with the latest coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patient in the province of Iloilo.
According to Mayor Jaime “James” Esmeralda, of their 200 employees, about 150 were exposed to the patient.
“Amo ni subong ginakabalak-an namon kay paano nalang ang operasyon sang munisipyo kay halos tanan sa amon maPUM (persons under monitoring) kag kinanglan i-quarantine,” he said.
The Department of Health (DOH-6) reported on Monday, June 1, one new COVID-19 case in Western Visayas.
WV Patient No. 114 is a 55-year-old male from Igbaras. He is aysmptomatic and under strict home quarantine.
The patient works in one of the local government offices, according Esmeralda.
“Tanan nga may close contact sa iya including ako will undergo COVID-19 testing,” the mayor said.
“Kasakit gid gali bataygon nga may nagpositive sa imo banwa. Naintindihan ko na ang nabatyagan sang iban nga mayors ta diri nga may COVID-19 cases sa ila mga banwa,” he added.
The mayor said they are now investigating how the patient contracted the dreaded disease.
“Duha subong ang amon ginatan-aw, posible may local transmission sa amon banwa, may asymptomatic nga galagaw, kag ikaduha basi dugay na ini sya na-infect pero nag-ayo na kag ang nadetect sang pagtest sa iya remnants nalang sang virus,” he shared.
According to Esmeralda, the patient had a history of travel to Manila in the first week of March and to Iloilo City on May 1.
“Kon tan-awon ta kadugay na, one month pa iya nga last travel outside sang aton banwa,” he said.
“Kag wala man sya exposure sa mga naghalin abroad or sa Manila nga nagsulod diri sa aton banwa,” Esmeralda added.
The patient was among the 50 persons in the town who submitted themselves to COVID-19 testing on May 27.
The province now has a total of 21 confirmed cases of the disease. IMT
