Baguio City COVID19-free No More

March 23, 2020 JUST IN

BAGUIO CITY (March 23, 2020) — Public health officials here confirmed on Monday that Baguio City is Covid19-free no more.
Dr. Amelita Macli-ing Pangilinan, director of the Department of Health-Cordillera said the 61-year-old female who came from Italy on March 2 began showing coughing, colds and sore throat five days later.  She went for consultation on March 13.
The patient, who is now on quarantine in a hospital, has one known close contact that is asymptomatic.
Pangilinan disclosed that the patient before her admission to the hospital visited Sablan and Itogon towns in Benguet, indicating she might have transmitted COVID19 where she went.
There are four more presumptive COVID-19 cases in Baguio City, including one fatality on March 18, an HLURB-Cordillera 55 year old female staff, but still awaiting confirmation from RITM.
The same female staff reportedly even had brushes with two department heads at the Baguio City hall, prompting Mayor Benjamin Magalong to order the two city hall department heads to go on quarantine.
Those 4 COVID 19 presumptive positive patients included another 55 year old male NCR who travelled from Makati to Baguio City who is now admitted at a Level 3 facility in NCR;  a 57-year old female who travelled from Manila to Baguio and now admitted at a Level 3 facility in Baguio City;  a 31 year old male who travelled from Taguig City to Baguio City now also admitted at a Level 3 facility in the city and another 49 year old male who came from Manila, also admitted at a Level 3 facility here.
DOH-Cordillera thus sums up the COVID19 statistics as:  2 confirmed cases in the highland region (1-Abra;  1-Baguio City);  143 PUIs; 42 currently admitted at hospitals; 49 quarantined; 52 total discharged and 73 total PUIs who turned negative of the dreaded disease.
Artemio Dumlao/ABN