BACOLOD CITY––At least 83.52 percent of the locally-stranded individuals (LSIs), who entered Negros Occidental on Sunday, Jan. 9, tested positive for COVID-19.
The 76 individuals brought to 120 the number of LSIs who entered the province in January and tested positive for COVID-19.
Provincial Health Officer Ernell Tumimbang said the number of travelers who tested positive in January was alarming.
The increase in cases, he said, may have been because of the rapid antigen tests conducted on arriving passengers.
On Monday, they were subjected to a swab test to determine if they were COVID-19-positive.
With airline companies now allowed only one flight to the Bacolod-Silay Airport per day starting this week, the number of incoming travelers would be drastically reduced, said Provincial Administrator Rayfrando Diaz.
The Department of Health (DOH) said Monday that Bacolod was a moderate risk area for COVID-19 classified under Alert Level 3.
The DOH report does not change the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases’ classification of Bacolod at Alert Level 2 until Jan. 15.