TWENTY-FOUR residents of Caraga have tested positive for coronavirus disease (Covid-19), bringing the region’s confirmed cases to 56, an official of the Department of Health in Region 13 disclosed last night.
Dr. Jose R. Llacuna Jr., DOH 13 regional director, reported in Caraga Kontra Covid-19 online, that the 24 new Covid-19 patients include 14 “locally stranded individuals” and four “returning overseas Filipinos” who arrived last week.
“Also tested positive is a health worker, a nurse from Butuan City,” said Llacuna, who declared a local transmission in Butuan after three city residents were confirmed to be Sars-CoV-2 virus carriers.
He said all three have no travel history and close contracts with Covid-19 patients, hence their infections could not be traced.
“Two others, who tested positive for Covid-19, from other parts of the region had traveled to Butuan,” said the regional health official, hinting that they must have caught the virus from the regional capital city.
Llacuna said the 24 fresh active cases of Covid-19 were among 136 test results he received yesterday from the state-run Southern Philippines Medical Center in Davao City.
He said the 24 new cases were part of the 35 of the swab specimens that yielded positive in reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) tests, the 10 others were second and third repeat swabs of existing Covid-19 active cases of the region.
Sixteen of the 35 are from Butuan, three from Agusan del Sur, two each from Agusan del Norte, and Surigao del Sur.
Also included as a virus carrier is a transient resident in Caraga, a native of Zamboanga del Sur.
“All 35, except one, are asymptomatic,” Llacuna said, while the other 101 specimens from individuals, feared to have infected, tested negative from the viral disease. (Uriel C. Quilinguing)
