More cases surface as Cebu await post-June 30 quarantine status

Cebu province, now under general community quarantine, now has  1,158 of COVID-19 cases as of June 30, 2020. Cebu City, which recently gained national attention for its COVID-19 cases, declared that it has 5,494 COVID-19 cases which is over 500 heads lower the DOH-7’s data that shows it has 6,024 cases. (CDN Digital File)

CEBU CITY, Philippines — As Cebuanos await President Rodrigo Duterte’s announcement of the quarantine control status of the different areas in the country on Tuesday evening, June 30, 2020, local authorities have reported more cases of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) both in Cebu City and Cebu province.

According to the Department of Health in Central Visayas’ (DOH-7) data as of 5 p.m., 38 new cases have been added to the tally under Cebu province, bringing the total number of cases here to 1,158.

Among these new cases is the first COVID-19 patient of the southern Cebu town of Alegria, who recently gave birth in a private hospital here in Cebu City. The patient, as well as her newborn, is asymptomatic.

The Municipality of Daanbantayan also reported four new cases this Tuesday. All four patients belong to one family from barangay Poblacion and are immediate family members of a previously confirmed case in the northernmost town.

The youngest of the new cases in the town is a three-year-old boy.

The four new cases brought the total number of COVID-19 cases in Daanbantayan to 10, which including its Mayor Sun Shimura.

Cordova town on Mactan Island also reported three new cases, one from Barangay Poblacion and two from Barangay Cogon.

Conflicting figures

In Cebu City, which is now under national attention due to the COVID-19 situation here,  the City Health Department announced that it logged on Tuesday a whopping 353 new cases, bringing their total confirmed cases to 5,494.

The COVID-19 case bulletin of the DOH-7 as of 5 p.m. on June 30. (Source: DOH-7)

The June 30-COVID-19 case update of Cebu City Health Department.

The city’s figures on its COVID-19 cases, however, continue to vary with those declared by the DOH-7.

DOH-7’s case monitoring as of 5 p.m. already shows that the city has breached the 6,000-mark on its total COVID-19 case.

The DOH-7’s bulletin also showed that there are only 109 new cases in the city, bringing its total to 6,024 with 3,463 active cases, 2,388 recoveries, and 173 deaths.

Due to the prevailing COVID-19 situation in Cebu City, Secretary Roy Cimatu, who is the designated overseer of the COVID-19 response here, already said in a press briefing earlier that the ECQ status in the city should continue.

READ: ECQ should continue in Cebu City — Cimatu

In a televised press briefing at noon on Tuesday, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said the president will address the nation on Tuesday evening to announce the quarantine control status of the different areas in the country.

Roque also revealed that at least four local government units (LGUs), including Cebu province had appealed to the Interagency Task Force (IATF) for the reclassification of the quarantine control status in their areas of jurisdiction.

READ: Cebu province, 3 other areas appealed for quarantine reclassification

Although the presidential spokesman did not detail on the appeal of each LGU, he said that three of the LGUs were asking for the IATF to heighten their quarantine status while only one requested to be downgraded to a more relaxed status. /bmjo