COVID takes toll on city’s working sector

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) continues to take toll on young adults between 21 to 30 years old in Iloilo City, data from the City Epidemiological Surveillance Unit (CESU) revealed on Wednesday.

Based on the total registered COVID-19 cases in the metro in the first four months of 2021, a large chunk of cases was traced to young adults aged 21 to 30 with 402 cases.

The second most infected age group are adults aged 31-40 with 213 cases, followed by the age sector of 41-50 (167); 51-60 (164); and 61-70 (131).

Since 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) has noted that the majority of those infected in the country came from working adults aged 21-40.

The WHO reported that the same trend had been observed in other countries particularly in Japan and Australia wherein the working sector has been the driving force of COVID-19 transmission being the sector that regularly goes out to work.

Iloilo City saw a significant drop in COVID-19 cases for the month of April as it only recorded 290 cases from April 1 to April 27. This is 28.5% lower than the 406 cases recorded in the same period last March.

The daily COVID-19 infection rate in the city also went down by almost 27%, with 11 daily average cases compared to the 15 daily average cases in the previous month.

Currently, majority of COVID-19 cases in the metro is local transmission.

As of April 27, the city has 1,341 local cases with 1,085 recoveries or 81%, 223 active cases (17%), and 33 deaths (2%).

The city has been intensifying its efforts to vaccinate city residents including non-city residents who are working in Iloilo City at the soonest possible time.

According to Mayor Jerry Treñas, they are targeting to inoculate about 400,000 individuals in Iloilo City.

“We are looking at around 400,000 persons to be vaccinated of the available vaccines. Indi kita magpili regardless kon taga-city ka or indi as long as diri ka gatrabaho and botante kaman or indi,” he said in a previous media interview.

Meanwhile, a resident of Iloilo City who tested positive for the UK variant of COVID-19 in Manila has recovered before he was allowed to return on March 31, 2021.

“Technically we cannot say that we have a UK variant here. There was a carrier but he is already negative of the disease when he arrived. We just have to be extra careful,” said Iloilo City Covid team spokesperson Jeck Conlu in a phone interview on Wednesday.

Information from the Regional Epidemiology and Surveillance Unit (RESU) of the Department of Health Western Visayas Center for Health Development (DOH WV CHD) said the resident was an overseas Filipino worker (OFW) from Italy who arrived in Manila via Clark International Airport on March 13.

He tested positive for COVID-19 and placed under quarantine for 11 days.

After he was cleared, the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) facilitated his return to Iloilo.

As a protocol, he was swabbed upon arrival in Iloilo and found negative of the virus. He underwent three days of hotel quarantine before he was allowed to go home to Mandurriao district on April 4.

“When he arrived here he was already negative. It’s almost a month since he arrived here,” he added.

The City Epidemiology and Surveillance Unit (CESU) also checked on the family, close contacts, and friends of the OFW and so far they have not experienced any signs and symptoms of the virus.

Conlu added that the city’s Uswag Molecular Laboratory also sent more than 100 specimens for a random test to the Philippine Genome Center last month but has yet to receive the results.

Iloilo City’s Covid-19 cases this month already declined by 26.67 percent compared to cases in March, he said.

From the 15 average daily cases in March, it has declined to 11, although the occurrence of cases is still unpredictable.

The city government protocols and the strict enforcement of minimum health standards have been a factor in the decline, Conlu said, adding that this includes faster contact tracing and the release of specimen results in less than 24 hours.

Other effective measures are putting a limit on the conduct of mass gathering and movement of people, and the alcohol ban.

Barangay officials are advised to report cases in their jurisdiction so the Covid team can immediately respond and isolate those positive cases.

Currently, no area in this city’s 180 barangays is placed on lockdown due to the quick action of isolating their Covid-19 cases, Conlu added.

He said they have yet to see the effect of the vaccination as only 610 front-liners have availed of their second dose and 4,200 of their first doses. (ERS/With a report from PNA)