The St. Francis of Assisi Church in Siquijor town, Siquijor. | File photo
CEBU CITY, Philippines – Two more locally stranded individuals (LSIs) from Cebu became the newest patients afflicted with the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Siquijor, the provincial government there announced.
Siquijor island’s fifth and sixth confirmed COVID-19 patients were a 26-year-old male with an address in Enrique Villanueva town and a 22-year-old female from Maria.
This development brings the total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the island-province to six, of which three remained actively infected as of Thursday, October 8, 2020.
Local officials said both were LSIs, who are now placed under the province’s designated isolation facility, arrived from Cebu last September 27, 2020.
In an advisory by the Provincial Government of Siquijor posted on Thursday evening, the two new COVID-19 patients, upon arrival, were immediately placed under 14-day quarantine in a temporary holding facility before they were swabbed last October 5.
Their results came out positive of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, last October 8.
Citing recent anti-coronavirus rules from the national government, the local government there added that the patients were no longer required by government protocols to undergo swab test before their arrival in Siquijor.
“Kini ang unang batch sa atung pagpapauli nga wala na nato gi mandoan ug negative swab test gumikan sa bag-o nga protocol na atong makita sa DILG (Department of Interior and Local Government) Advisory dated August 25, 2020 to quote, “RT-PCR Testing will be conducted by the receiving LGUs upon LSIs arrival at their final destination,” stated the Provincial Government of Siquijor.
(They belonged to the first batch of returning LSIs that was no longer required to undergo mandatory swab test before their arrival in accordance with the new protocol issued by an advisory from DILG dated August 25, 2020, that says ‘RT-PCR Testing will be conducted by the receiving LGUs upon LSIs arrival at their final destination’.)
“Kini gipasabot nga ang mga LSI kay diri na mismo sa Probinsya nato eh swab test ug dili na magkinahanglan ug negative swab test ayha makauli diri sa Probinsya,” they added.
(This means that LSIs returning to Siquijor will be swabbed here and they are no longer required to undergo swab tests in order to depart and go back to Siquijor.)
The local government also said around 100 LSIs who arrived in Siquijor together with the province’s two new patients continue their mandatory 14-day quarantine even if they already tested negative for the virus.
They also reminded the public to continue following health protocols such as wearing face masks, frequent handwashing, and physical distancing.
/bmjo
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