TACLOBAN CITY—A ban on the return of individuals stranded by pandemic lockdowns to the province of Leyte had taken effect last Tuesday (Dec. 15) and would last until the end of 2020.
The ban was meant to ease crowding in quarantine facilities in Leyte and allow health care workers to rest.
According to government records, 1,518 of 2,614 COVID-19 cases in Leyte involved individuals who had been stranded elsewhere before returning to the province.
The number of COVID-19 cases in Eastern Visayas continued to surge as 156 new ones were recorded by the Department of Health on Wednesday (Dec. 16).
The new cases were from Leyte province with 81, Northern Samar with 34, Samar with 20, Eastern Samar with 16, Southern Leyte with 4 and Biliran with one.
The region’s COVID-19 death toll had also increased to 109 with the death of a 66-year-old man from the town of Calubian last Dec. 11.