COVID cases in Iloilo City, province continue to spike

Despite efforts of local government units (LGUs) to prevent the spread of Covid-19, cases in both Iloilo City and Iloilo province continue to rise.

Iloilo province logged an all-time high record on September 4, 2021 with 447 new cases detected in 39 municipalities in the province, based on data from the Iloilo Provincial Health Office (PHO).

Pavia reported the most number of new cases at 46 followed by Guimbal (32), Oton (31), Pototan (26), Badiangan (25), Barotac Nuevo (23), Concepcion (23), Passi City (22), and Miagao (20).

All other towns logged less than 20 cases.

From Sep. 2 to Sep. 3, Iloilo province also logged more than 300 cases per day with 389 cases recorded on Friday and 322 cases on Thursday.

This brings the total active Covid-19 cases in the province to 6,051 and 627 mortalities. The province saw a significant increase in cases last August with 7,595 cases recorded in one month.

As of Sept. 4, the average rate of daily Covid-19 cases in the province is at 197 per day.

On the other hand, Iloilo City noted a spike in cases in the first week of September.

Data from the City Health Office (CHO) showed that the city logged 642 cases from Sep. 1 to September 4. This is 111 percent higher compared to 304 cases recorded last month of the same period.

The city also reported consistent three-digit cases in the past four days with 153 on Sept.1, 174 on Sept. 2, 145 on Sept. 3, and 170 on Sept. 4

The current average daily cases in Iloilo City is 161 per day. The total active cases climbed to 1,952 with 448 deaths.

Following the spike of Covid-19 cases, Mayor Jerry Treñas appealed to the public to stay at home in the next two weeks as medicines and supplies used to treat Covid-19 patients are running out.

“May I request all my beloved Ilonggos to stay at home for the next two weeks. Cases are rising and we see reports of two or more deaths every day. Hospitals are full and even stocks of the life-saving medicine of Tocilizumab have been depleted. Please stay at home and always strictly observe minimum health protocols,” he said in a statement on Tuesday.

The mayor also reminded Ilonggos to take advantage of the vaccines and have themselves vaccinated to protect themselves against Covid-19.

Both the Iloilo City and Iloilo province were placed under Modified Enhanced Community Quarantine (MECQ). (ERS)