ILOILO City – Stay homing may have become a cliché since the onset of the pandemic but this can save one from infection or death due to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), according to Mayor Jerry Treñas.
“COVID-19 cases in the city are increasing and now even our health frontliners are affected,” Treñas stressed, following the death of a young businessman friend due to COVID-19. He, however, declined to name this latest coronavirus casualty.
The COVID-19 death toll in Western Visayas already breached the 1,000 mark. Yesterday, the Department of Health (DOH) reported 1,019 deaths that included the mayor’s friend.
In Iloilo City, the death toll climbed to 193.
In a report by the OCTA Research Group yesterday, Iloilo City was seventh among 10 areas outside the National Capital Region with the biggest rise in COVID-19 cases.
From May 12 to 18, the OCTA Research Group listed an average of 58 new COVID-19 cases in the city – 99 percent higher than the group’s record in the previous report.
“COVID-19 is real. It can kill and it is very easy to transfer from one person to the other. For the next seven days I am requesting you to stay home if possible,” said Treñas.
The most number of COVID-19 casualties was in Negros Occidental (253) followed by Bacolod City (236) and Iloilo City.
Treñas appealed for the Ilonggos to stay home while waiting for the approval of the National Inter-Agency Task Force (NIATF) for the city’s appeal for a higher quarantine status.
Treñas requested to escalate the city’s quarantine status to modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ).
He also enjoined everyone to follow the minimum health protocols.
“We cannot overemphasize this enough. The only way to curb the spread of transmission, and hopefully lessen the number of deaths, is when we abide by the regulations for our own safety,” he stressed.
Treñas explained that placing the city under a stricter quarantine classification is mainly to protect the Ilonggos.
He emphasized that there’s a need to slow down infection, lower the infection rate and lessen the number of cases.
“This way, we can avoid expensive treatment and prevent our healthcare system from being overwhelmed. Ultimately, we help and protect our medical and non-medical frontliners who have been toiling through this pandemic for more than a year now,” he added.
Citing everyday meetings with the city’s COVID team, Treñas warned of an upward trend in COVID-19 case if the rate of transmission cannot be immediately controlled.
“The COVID bed capacities of hospitals are already full, so much, that three city hall employees died at the emergency room just trying to look for a hospital that would accommodate them,” Treñas lamented.
“I know and understand that many are already tired of COVID. Some do not even believe it anymore. But the virus is real and still here, and we should not take it for granted. If we lower our guards, then we might find it so much difficult to control later on,” he further stressed./PN