ILOILO City – Three inmates of the Iloilo District Jail (IDJ) in Barangay Nanga, Pototan tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
Asymptomatic, these detainees were quarantined at the IDJ’s isolation facility, said Jail Senior Superintendent Gilbert Peremne, deputy director for administration of the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) Region 6.
The infected inmates, remitted on Jan. 8, were initially quarantined as part of BJMP’s protocol.
They also underwent the mandatory reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction test on Jan. 13. The results came out the next day.
“The three offenders who contracted COVID-19 will undergo a 25-day quarantine. After one week, they will again take COVID-19 tests until they finish their quarantine period,” Peremne said.
He allayed fears over the possible contagion inside prison cells, saying no jail personnel had direct contact with the COVID-19 cases, which were part of the 12 new COVID-19 infections tallied yesterday by the Provincial Health Office (PHO).
On the other hand, Peremne reiterated that daily visitation privilege – including conjugal visits – remain suspended.
Jail wardens across Western Visayas, he said, were ordered not to accept visitors as a precaution against the spread of the viral illness.
Peremne cited an alternative – the e-dalaw, or electronic visit, allowing inmates to communicate with their immediate families using a cellphone or a computer.
Access to e-dalaw, however, is restricted to only the inmates’ immediate families.
All communications must be prescheduled and only five minutes long, and made only during office hours./PN
