ILOILO City – The policeman classified as a patient under investigation (PUI) for suspected coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection tested negative for the SARS-CoV-12 virus.
Iloilo City Police Office (ICPO) director Police Colonel Eric Dampal and 40 other policemen earlier classified as persons under monitoring (PUMs) were thus cleared, according to ICPO spokesperson Police Captain Shella Mae Sangrines.
With this development, the ICPO now has only two PUMs left although they already completed their 14-day home quarantine.
“Our two PUMs are in good condition,” said Sangrines.
As of this writing, they were waiting to be officially declared as cleared.
Dampal stressed on Monday it was business as usual at the ICPO; policemen will continue to maintain peace and order in the city and man quarantine control points.
Policemen are considered frontliners in the city government’s campaign to curb the spread of COVID-19.
On Monday, Mayor Jerry Treñas himself made the disclosure about Dampal being an PUM together with the latter’s 40 policemen for having close contact with the PUI cop.
The PUI cop, who eventually tested negative for COVID-19, was assigned to the ICPO Mobile Group. On the first week of March he went to Manila.
He observed home quarantine beginning March 31.
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, according to the World Health Organization.
These symptoms are usually mild and begin gradually. Some people become infected but don’t develop any symptoms and don’t feel unwell.
“We are praying that our personnel who are frontliners remain safe. We really need them in securing our borders,” said Sangrines./PN
