Priest’s COVID-19 death prompts closure of 2 Bukidnon churches

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY—A priest in Bukidnon province died of COVID-19 recently and another was infected, a diocesan official said.

Fr. Virgilio Delfin, spokesperson of the Diocese of Malaybalay, said Fr. Deomedis Brigoli died last Saturday (May 1) night at the Northern Mindanao Medical Center (NMMC) here where he was under treatment.

Delfin said doctors declared the death of Brigoli, parish priest of Libona town, Bukidnon, as “due to COVID-19 complications.”

Delfin said another parish priest, Fr. Pablo Salengua, is confined at the NMMC after showing COVID-19 symptoms.

The death of Brigoli and sickness of Salengua prompted the diocese to close the Nazareno parish church in Libona and the Saints Peter and Paul parish church in Manolo Fortich town.

“Their closure is indefinite until such time their towns’ local inter-agency task force opens them,” Delfin said.

Several priests from parish churches in Misamis Oriental and Cagayan de Oro were also earlier infected by SARS Cov2, the coronavirus that causes COVID-19.

Fr. Der John Faborada, head of the Cagayan de Oro archdiocese’s Social Action Center, said six priests had been infected and their churches closed for 10 days.

TSB