ILOILO – An Ilonggo crew of a fishing vessel from Navotas City, Metro Manila that recently docked in Iloilo City tested positive for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), bringing to 103 the total number of cases in Western Visayas as of yesterday.
The crew was a resident of Alimodian, Iloilo but fortunately had not yet set foot in his hometown after docking, according to Mayor Geefre Alonsabe.
Patient No. 103, a 34-year-old male, is currently in isolation at Iloilo City’s quarantine facility.
He had close contact with Patient No. 102, a 38-year-old male colleague at their fishing vessel and a resident of Hinigaran, Negros Occidental.
Patient No. 102 is currently confined at a hospital in Iloilo City. He was feverish, one of the symptoms of COVID-19.
Their fishing vessel docked at the Iloilo Fishing Port on May 11 to delivery fish.
The vessel had a total of 18 crew members. All of them were subjected to reverse transcription – polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test.
According to Mayor Alonsabe, Patient No. 103 visited Alimodian in January this year yet before COVID-19 became a pandemic.
He said the local government of Alimodian was willing to accommodate Patient No. 103 at the town’s quarantine facility should the city government of Iloilo decide to turn the patient over to his hometown.
Patient No. 103 should not be subjected to discrimination, stressed Alonsabe. He appealed to the people of Alimodian not to panic.
“Ginapahanumdom ko gid ang mga pumoluyo nga magpabilin nga mapag-on. Ang local government unit naton nagahimu sang tikang para mayad ang maabtan sang taga-Alimodian,” said Alonsabe.
Patient No. 103 was the sole addition to Region 6’s COVID-19 case tally yesterday.
Of the 103 cases, seven are hospitalized, two are on home quarantine and 20 on facility quarantine.
Sixty-four cases have already recovered while the number of deaths still stood at 10.
Here’s the breakdown of cases per area:
* Aklan – six
* Antique – 14
* Capiz – five
* Guimaras – zero
* Iloilo province – 20
* Negros Occidental – three
* Bacolod City – nine
* Iloilo City – 16
* repatriates – 30 (Aklan, one; Antique, three; Guimaras, two; Iloilo province, four; Negros Occidental, seven; Bacolod City, three; and Iloilo City, 10).
The most common symptoms of COVID-19 are fever, tiredness, and dry cough.
Some patients may have aches and pains, nasal congestion, runny nose, sore throat or diarrhea. These symptoms are usually mild and begin gradually. Some people become infected but don’t develop any symptoms and don’t feel unwell.
Possible vaccines and some specific drug treatments are under investigation. They are being tested through clinical trials. The World Health Organization is coordinating efforts to develop vaccines and medicines to prevent and treat COVID-19./PN
