BY BOY RYAN ZABAL and JUN AGUIRRE
KALIBO, Aklan – In a bid to prevent the spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and following its three confirmed cases in this province, Gov. Florencio Miraflores ordered the suspension of all public transport, including the sea traffic in Boracay Island in Malay town.
Miralflores issued his Executive Order (EO) No. 20-B on March 28, which states that essential private and public establishments like banks, remittance centers, laundry shops, bakeries, gas and water refilling stations, supermarkets, pawnshops, fast food restaurants, hospitals, clinics, media establishments, drugstores and pharmacies are encouraged to provide transportation services to employees coming in or leaving their workplaces. The EO, however, will not be applicable to cargo trucks and to government and private vehicles.
As of this writing, this province has three confirmed positive cases and 3,800 persons under monitoring of the COVID-19, according to the latest figures from the Provincial Health Office-Aklan (PHO-Aklan).
The three Aklanons who tested positive for the virus are the following:
*Patient No. 5 – An 81-year-old male with a history of travel to Manila on March 10. He was admitted to the Aklan Provincial Hospital on March 16 and was discharged on March 21. Currently, he is under home quarantine in his residence in Libacao, Aklan.
*Patient No. 8 – A 68-year-old male from this capital town also had a travel history to Manila. He is currently admitted at the Dr. Rafael S. Tumbokon Memorial Hospital in Kalibo, Aklan since March 20.
The patient arrived here on March 6 and started to experience symptoms of the COVID-19 on March 14.
*Patient No. 13 – A 37-year-old male medical frontliner with another history of travel to Manila. The patient is currently being treated at the Aklan Provincial Hospital in this capital town. On March 10, he manifested cough, sore throat and colds, and was later classified as a person under investigation.
“Contact tracing is now being done to those persons who were able to keep in touch with the patients in the last two weeks,” said Dr. Cornelio Cuachon of PHO-Aklan.
Cuachon added: “We urge the public to do their part in mitigating the spread of coronavirus. The Provincial Health Office is asking the cooperation of all of us. The frontline health workers and medical personnel are risking their safety to respond to the needs of the public. We ask the public to practice preventive measures, stay at home or under quarantine, seek medical consultation, and help stop the spread of fake news.”
Following the news of the confirmed COVID-19 cases, Miraflores issued “stay home” orders to his at least 600,000 residents.
“We have to sacrifice by suspending public transport for the next two weeks for public health protection. We are asking your cooperation, follow health protocols of authorities. Stay home,” the governor stressed.
The governor earlier shut down schools and non-essential businesses, cancelled all public and private gatherings and events in Aklan to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 within communities. Church activities for the Holy week were also cancelled.(With a report from Akean Forum/PN)
