Bicol logs 71 COVID-19 variants of concern

LEGAZPI CITY––The Department of Health (DOH) in Bicol has warned that the spread of COVID-19 variants of concern (VOC) has been reported in communities in the region, stirring a spike in cases here.

Dr. Ernie Vera, DOH Bicol chief, said the region logged 71 COVID-19 variants from Aug. 23 to 27 based on the genomic sequencing result from the Philippine Genome Center (PGC).

Of this figure, 23 were local cases of the Indian Delta variant, 33 were of the South African Variant (Beta), and 15 were of the UK variant (Alpha).

Vera, citing the DOH COVID-19 tracker, said 109 local VOC cases have been recorded since the first local case of the variants was reported on July 21.

In a news briefing Monday, Vera said the DOH COVID Tracker has recorded an average of 200 COVID-19 cases a day during the past several days in Bicol with 352 cases, the highest single-day recorded on Friday, Aug. 27.

With the impending surge of cases in Bicol and the emerging threat of the highly transmissible variants of concern, Vera urged the public to protect themselves by following the minimum public health standards.

He also appealed to various local governments to initiate tighter health protocols, especially prohibiting mass gatherings.

As of Sunday, 445 of the 1,067 COVID beds (42 percent) were occupied.

DOH also reported that 812,341 individuals in Bicol have been fully vaccinated as of Aug. 29.

Bicol has logged 4,124 active cases as of Monday.

Since the pandemic started last year, the region has recorded 25,056 cases, of which 19,990 have recovered, and 942 died.

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