ILOILO City – Mayor Jerry Treñas is self-quarantining for 14 days.
“I was exposed to two or three coronavirus-positive cases,” he posted tersely in his Facebook page late afternoon yesterday.
His two-week quarantine right away started after his announcement.
Treñas told Panay News he welcomed visitors in his office yesterday and it was too late when two or three of them later found out their test results – positive for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
The mayor was immediately informed of his exposure.
“Ga-contact tracing na sila,” said Treñas, referring to the visitors.
The disease can spread from person to person through small droplets from the nose or mouth which are spread when a person with COVID-19 coughs or exhales.
These droplets also land on objects and surfaces around the person. Other people then catch COVID-19 by touching these objects or surfaces, then touching their eyes, nose or mouth.
“Ang tanan nga may close contact sa akon ma-isolate man anay,” said Treñas.
The test results of his visitors “came out later,” he told Panay News last night.
The visitors donated boxes of personal protective equipment for the city government’s pandemic-response frontliners.
“I didn’t even know they were swabbed, unfortunately,” said Treñas.
The city’s chief executive assured the Ilonggos he would be more careful.
“We will never allow COVID-positive patients inside my room,” he told Panay News.
As of yesterday, the Department of Health (DOH) reported, Iloilo City’s COVID-9 cases rose to 113. Fourteen new cases were recorded.
DOH also announced 12 local transmission of which nine were from Iloilo City and one each from Negros Occidental, Passi City and Bago City.
Selective ‘extreme quarantine’ in 4 zones
In a related development, in zones II and III of Bo. Obrero, Lapuz district in zones 4 and 5 of Barangay Pali Benedicto in Mandurriao district that were placed under “Surgical Extreme Enhanced Community Quarantine” (SEECQ), households or residential buildings whose occupants’ test results were negative for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) may no longer be subjected to quarantine restrictions, according to Mayor Treñas.
Only households or residential buildings whose occupants’ test results were positive for COVID-19 or not yet released would continue to be under SEECQ until lifted, he stressed.
Treñas ordered this selective localized containment measure in two separate executive orders issued on Aug. 3 covering the four zones.
He placed these zones under SEECQ on Aug. 2 after a clustering of COVID-19 cases were detected in them. Members of households were subjected to reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction test.
There were 16 confirmed COVID-19 cases in Bo. Obrero and 11 in Barangay Pali Benedicto, data from the Department of Health – Region 6 showed.
In a related development, Treñas met with the officials of the Iloilo Fish Port Complex in Barangay Tanza yesterday. They discussed public health safety protocols that must be followed there – wearing of facemask and face shield and the observance of physical distancing.
There must also be continuous disinfection of the complex, Treñas stressed.
The fish port complex was placed on a 72-hour lockdown beginning Aug. 2 after two persons working there tested positive for COVID-19; one of them recently died.
The complex is a major center of fish trading and marine products processing in Region 6. It is the traditional landing site of bagnetters and other fishing bancas in Iloilo City and nearby towns./PN
