Early travel ban, border closure keep Guimaras virus-free

Guimaras, the smallest among the six provinces in Western Visayas, has yet to record a confirmed case of the new coronavirus disease (COVID-19) months after the pandemic broke out.

Officials said the early implementation of border and travel restrictions on the island of 205,000 residents could be one of the reasons Guimaras was COVID-19-free.

Gov. Samuel Gumarin cited the imposition on Jan. 31 of a policy barring tours and the entry of guests without clearance from the Department of Health (DOH) and the Bureau of Quarantine.

Under an executive order issued by Gumarin, tourists from China and areas with confirmed cases of infection must secure clearance that they had not recently traveled to Wuhan City, the Chinese city where the first cases of COVID-19 were detected, and were not exhibiting symptoms of infection.

Preparing early

Guimaras also imposed strict restrictions on incoming and outgoing travel, with the closure of ports facing Iloilo province and Negros Island.

Guimarasnons who have to work in Iloilo daily were asked to stay in Iloilo because they would need to undergo a 14-day mandatory quarantine when they return home.

“We have to prepare early and maintain strict measures because we do not have the capacity to deal with a surge in cases,” Gumarin, a doctor, told the Inquirer.

Guimaras is a fourth-class province with an annual income of less than P270 million. Its provincial hospital, Dr. Catalino Gallego Nava Provincial Hospital, is below Level 1 or the most basic category of hospitals where patients needing only minor care and supervision are accepted, according to Gumarin.

The island also has an emergency hospital and an outpatient clinic.

Even with the downgrading of restrictions to the general community quarantine level, ports will remain closed, except for transport of goods and people performing essential work.

Guimarasnons were already reeling from a prolonged slump in tourism activities, one of its main economic drivers aside from the production and export of its famous mangoes, even before quarantine measures were enforced due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

As of May 3, the DOH had reported 72 COVID-19 cases, with nine deaths and 27 recoveries.