Marikina isolates F. Mariano Street after tracing virus-infected resident

Disinfection is being done in F. Mariano St. in Barangay Nangka, Marikina City after the city government discovered a new case of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in the area. Image: Courtesy of the Marikina local government unit

MANILA, Philippines — A street in Marikina City that is known for being densely populated was put on “neighborhood quarantine” Friday after a new case of COVID-19 was discovered in the area, the local government said.

In a statement, Mayor Marcelino Teodoro said that F. Mariano St. in Barangay Nangka will be on quarantine for 24 hours. He said its isolation will only be removed until after contact tracing in the area has been completed.

“This is part of what we call effective containment measure,” Teodoro said.

Although there was only one confirmed COVID-19 case there, Teodoro said F. Mariano Street was placed under quarantine because it was known to have a “talipapa” (wet market) that is usually crowded.

According to the Marikina City mayor, the new COVID-19 case was discovered via a link map, a system they use to locate individuals who have had direct contact with COVID-19 patients.

Teodoro explained that the basis for the link map is “the people who had been exposed to COVID-19 patients retroactively 14 days since they contracted the disease.”

Based on the latest data from the local government, Marikina City, which operates a testing center accredited by the Department of Health, has 126 confirmed cases of COVID-19.

KGA