LUCENA CITY – San Pablo City in Laguna province has recorded 32 new coronavirus disease (COVID-19) patients, health authorities said Friday night.
Among the new validated virus carriers are five males and four female senior citizens aged 61 to 76, the city’s Anti-COVID-19 Task Force reported on April 9 at 6 p.m.
Authorities also disclosed that 25 validated virus carriers in the city, that also included six senior citizens, have recovered from the viral illness.
The city now has 328 active COVID-19 cases which were only 266 on April 1, indicating the continuous surge of cases.
From April 1 to 9, the city’s Anti-COVID-19 Task Force has recorded 220 new cases so far. Last month, the authorities logged a total of 382 cases.
As of April 9, the city also listed a total of 1,492 recoveries and 62 deaths due to COVID-19.
To address the continuous spike in COVID-19 cases in San Pablo, the Department of Health (DOH) has distributed a modular tent each to San Pablo City General Hospital and San Pablo City District Hospital.
The 44-bed capacity tents are intended for emergency medical care and extension of health facilities.
Dr. Eduardo Janairo, DOH Calabarzon director, said all hospitals in the region have to be prepared to handle “the influx of Covid patients not only from the provinces but also those of nearby Metro Manila.”
San Pablo, as part of Laguna province, is under the stricter enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) until April 30 to curb the continued rise of COVID-19 cases.
Mayor Lorenzo Amante reminded the residents to strictly follow all regulations being imposed by the national Inter-Agency Task Force under the ECQ.
Meanwhile, the city government has started the distribution of emergency cash aid or “ayuda” to qualified ECQ affected individuals.
Authorities posted the names of the aid recipients on the Facebook page of the city government for transparency.
Senior citizens and those classified as “person with disability” (PWD) were advised not to go to the assigned payout center in their respective villages as the money will be delivered to their homes.
President Duterte approved a P1,000-worth of in-kind and cash aid per ECQ-affected individual affected by the lockdown. Several members of a family can receive the ECQ aid, but only a maximum of P4,000 worth of assistance will be given per family.