Baguio has already 106 delta variants, Biosurveillance report reveals

BAGUIO CITY(November 8, 2021)— Latest bio surveillance report of the Philippine Genome Center (PGC) bared that 30 more cases were added to Baguio City’s Delta  Variant of  the Corona Virus Disease (COVID-19) log bringing the total to 106 as of first week of November.
The PGC also reported that the total number of detected Alpha Variant in the city is 116 while the Beta Variant remains at 52.
All in all, the city has 274 detected variants of concern (VOCs) as of said date. The city has been seeing less new COVID-19 cases for the past two weeks  after its bout with the Delta-driven surge which began on August 20, 2021.
Baguio City Mayor Benjamin Magalong said the surge lasted for one month and three weeks. He however cautioned residents against letting down their guards on the observance of the public health standards and compliance to restrictions as the possibility of saddling or case rebound remains.
Based on the data provided by data analyst Jefferson Damoslog, the lead contact tracing team listed a total of 8,570 patients linked to the VOC cases
Meanwhile, the Baguio City Health Services Office (HSO) considers that the month of October 2021 is Baguio City’s new deadliest month of the pandemic after posting the highest monthly Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) death toll with 171 deaths last month at the height of the Delta variant contagion.  The city’s previous highest monthly total was 136 deaths posted last September also this year.
City Health Officer Dr. Rowena Galpo said the October figure comprised 25.7 percent of the city’s total mortality of 665 as of Nov. 1. The number included 17 fatalities that occurred in previous months but reported only last month as the city continued to validate and update its records.
Magalong said the death rate had considerably slowed down in the past week.
Based on the data from the UP Baguio Department of Mathematics and Computer Science and the Baguio City Health Services Office, most of those who died were senior citizens and persons with comorbidities.
Majority were unvaccinated while the small number who died even with full vaccine coverage belonged to the vulnerable group who were either senior citizens or persons with underlying medical conditions.
Artemio A. Dumlao
Amianan Balita Ngayon