ILOILO – Mayor Jaime Esmeralda of Igbaras town is isolating. He has coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
“I tested positive. Results just came in,” he announced on Facebook.
Esmeralda initially had sore throat and cough. He decided to undergo reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test.
“My index case is hard to identify considering my exposure to positive patients,” added Esmeralda.
He ordered the following:
* All staff in the Office of the Mayor will undergo RT-PCR testing Thursday morning and strict home quarantine.
* Work at the town hall is suspended for two days until Thursday to give way to massive disinfection and contact tracing.
Work resumes on Sept. 10.
Esmeralda advised those who have been in close contact with him for the past 10 to 14 days to inform the Rural Health Unit.
As of Sept. 7, Igbaras had 523 total coronavirus cases – 148 active, 368 recovered and seven dead./PN
