Benguet Records Second COVID19 Positive

June 1, 2020 JUST IN

BAGUIO CITY (June 1, 2020) – Benguet province records its second COVID19 patient Monday just as the lockdown in barangay Ucab, the village of National Bilibid Prisons (NBP) jail officer Clifton Bacayan, 40, whose swab test turned positive of COVID19 Friday, was lifted.

Itogon, Benguet Mayor Victorio Palangdan said an individual from Labilab, Loacan, Itogon tested positive today, prompting him to order a lockdown on sitios SAbkil, Tocmo, Labilab and Bakong, all in barangay Loacan.

An extensive contact tracing has been launched by the Itogon municipal health office.

Earlier Monday morning, Mayor Palangdan lifted the lockdown on barangay Ucab taking cue from the Itogon town health office that all 18 contacts of the jail officer turned out negative for the disease.
This as Benguet province’s “COVID19-free status” became short-lived Friday with the positive result on Bacayan who like the second patient Monday are both confined at the Benguet General Hospital (BeGH).
The jail officer was said to have been initially tested negative from rapid testing before heading to Itogon town last Tuesday (May 26) with 7 other jail officers from the NBP to bring a cadaver to the Itogon town hall.
Palangdan earlier said on Saturday that 5 of Bacayan’s colleagues in the NBP who were with him were brought at the Itogon quarantine area at barangay Ucab’s sub-barangay office in barangay Loacan while the other jail officer headed to Ifugao province.
The town mayor bared that they have informed Ifugao to institute measures regarding the jail officer who went there.
Only last week, a father and his son– who were admitted in April were discharged from the hospital, that rendered Benguet province COVID19-free for two days until Friday’s sad news.
Artemio Dumlao