(REUTERS)
LUCENA CITY – Ten more individuals succumbed to COVID-19 in Quezon, bringing the death toll in the province to 615.
The Integrated Provincial Health Office reported Saturday afternoon that Gumaca and Mauban towns listed three fatalities each, Lucena City two and one each in the municipalities of Atimonan and Dolores.
Ninety of the total recorded deaths in the province since the pandemic started last year were recorded this month.
Lucena, the capital city of Quezon, has the most number of fatalities, with 109. Fifteen of them died this month.
The province has been seeing an alarming spike in COVID-19 cases since April, when 2,276 new cases were logged, compared to only 815 cases in March.
Last month, the IPHO recorded a total of 2,355 cases. From June 1 to 19, the province has listed 1,592 new COVID-19 cases.
Dr. Grace Santiago, IPHO head, said the rising number of new cases could be partly due to the public’s disregard of health and safety protocols.
As of June 19, Quezon, which remains under the general community quarantine, until the end of the month, recorded 14,444 COVID-19 cases and 12,695 recoveries.
The province has 1,114 active cases.
Lucena, which has been placed under the strict modified enhance community quarantine until June 30, has the most number of active cases with 259.