Samboan under ‘hard lockdown’ for 6 days

MAP OF SAMBOAN | Wikicommons File

CEBU CITY, Philippines — Samboan town in southwestern Cebu will undergo a six-day lockdown starting tomorrow, Friday, July 23 in an effort to contain the spread of COVID-19 there.

Samboan Mayor Emerito Calderon Jr. on Thursday, July 22, issued Executive Order (EO) No. 25, placing six of the seven barangays there under ‘hard lockdown’ due to rising COVID-19 cases.

Calderon’s new orders will cover Barangays Suba, Poblacion, Bonbon, Tangbo, Dalahikan, Colase, and Bato. These will take effect on Friday, July 23 until 12 midnight of July 28 ‘or unless a longer period is required.’

“The municipality of Samboan has a rising number of COVID-19 cases, symptomatic and asymptomatic with COVID suspect deaths for the past two weeks,” Calderon said in his EO.

As a result, the mayor has ordered mandatory stay-at-home for residents in affected barangays, and all non-essential travels are prohibited throughout the hard lockdown.

“This includes people going to enter Samboan. (But) the foregoing restriction shall not apply to persons who need immediate hospital care and management,” the EO added.

Public markets, tourist spots, and business establishments except for pharmacies, remittance centers, money transfer, and conveniences will be temporarily closed.

However, sari-sari stores, gas stations, and banks can resume operations on the fourth day of the ‘hard lockdown’ period.

Samboan is a fifth-class municipality, and has a population of over 20,000 people, according to the 2020 census. It is located approximately 146 kilometers southwest of Cebu City.

Based on the COVID-19 tracker of the Department of Health in Central Visayas (DOH-7), the town has reported a total of 185 confirmed cases of the infection as of July 21. Of this number, 68 remained active.

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