ILOILO – Gov. Arthur Defensor Jr. has restricted the travel to and from areas under enhanced community quarantine with confirmed local transmission of the coronavirus disease 2010 (COVID-19).
Two municipalities have so far recorded local transmission cases – one in Guimbal and one in Lambunao.
In issuing Executive Order (EO) 100 yesterday, Defensor said this travel restriction further bolsters the ongoing province-wide enhanced community quarantine that aims to curb the spread of COVID-19.
“Local transmission” as defined by the World Health Organization “indicates that the source of infection is within the reporting location, according to Defensor, citing a statement from the Department of Health (DOH).
Unless they are frontliners, residents of Guimbal and Lambunao are prohibited from leaving their towns beginning today until the province’s ongoing enhanced community quarantine ends on April 14, according to Defensor.
He, however, listed exemptions from this new travel restriction. These are the following:
* government officials / employees / personnel travelling in the performance of their functions
* persons travelling to address a health emergency and/or health need that cannot be catered within the quarantined municipality / city / barangay
* medical personnel and health / humanitarian workers travelling in the performance of their function
* persons otherwise authorized to travel within the province and Iloilo City under Enhanced Community Quarantine shall be allowed passage through the quarantined municipality /city / barangay, to any point in the province and/or Iloilo City
* persons providing frontline services, working/doing business in allowed establishments under Executive Order 80 (Enhanced Community Quarantine), accompanying crew and driver of common carriers / transport vehicles, delivery trucks, for the conduct of trade / commerce / agriculture, delivery of social / humanitarian services, fishing / marine activities and scientific / academic pursuit.
Defensor also clarified that persons residing outside Guimbal and Lambunao but stranded in these municipalities should be allowed to leave.
In issuing EO 100, Defensor cited an April 1 statement from DOH confirming local transmission of COVID-19 in Guimbal, Lambunao and Bacolod City: “As such, municipal/city-wide community quarantine is advised when there are at least two positive COVID-19 cases belonging to different barangays in the same municipality/city, as per Interagency Task Force (IATF) Resolution No. 11 dated March 12, 2020. These areas with local transmission are advised to strengthen the implementation of community quarantine.”
The first local COVID-19 transmission in Iloilo province was in Guimbal town. It was confirmed only on March 31. A 59-year-old male (the region’s Patient No. 2) apparently infected his househelp, a 51-year-old woman (the region’s Patient No. 18).
Lambunao registered the province’s second local transmission case. On April 1, a 44-year-old female was confirmed to have contracted COVID-19 from her 70-year-old father (Lambunao’s first COVID-19 case). The father died./PN
