By Angel V. Agliam, PGIN-CMO
- Gov. MMM appeals to the public to avoid social gathering at all costs calling it the super spreader event for COVID-19
Fifteen urban barangays in San Nicolas, Ilocos Norte are placed under General Community Quarantine (GCQ) for 14 days after the town recorded a surge in COVID-19 positive cases.
“We have come to an agreement that most of the barangays, especially in the town proper, be placed under GCQ, and while several rural barangays with low cases will stay under MGCQ,” Governor Matthew Marcos Manotoc announced on April 5, 2021.
San Nicolas Mayor Dr. Alfredo P. Valdez Jr. issued Executive Order No. 18 series of 2021, putting almost all barangays in the town under lockdown and containment.
Since April 5, 2021, some areas of the following barangays have been under lockdown: Sitios 2 and 5 in Brgy. 1 San Francisco; Sitio 3 in Brgy. 2 San Baltazar; Sitios 1, 2, 4, and 5 in Brgy. 3 San Ildefonso; Sitios 1 and 6 in Brgy. 4 San Bartolome; Sitio 1 in Brgy. 5 San Silvestre; Sitios 2, 5, and 6 in Brgy. 6 San Juan Bautista; Brgy. 7 San Miguel; Sitio 4 in Brgy. 8 San Rufino; Sitio 1 Brgy. San Lucas; Sitios 2, 3, and 7 in Brgy. 10 San Paulo; Sitios 4 and 5 in Brgy. 11 San Fernando; Sitio 1 in Brgy. 13 San Eugenio; Sitios 4, 5, 6 in Brgy. 14 San Gregorio; Sitio 4 in Brgy. 15 San Jose; Sitios 1, 3, 4, and 5 in Brgy. 16 San Marcos; Sitio 4 in Brgy. 18 San Pedro; Sitios 2 and 6 in Brgy. 19 San Lorenzo; Sitio 5 in Brgy. 20 San Pablo; whole area of Sitio 1 and a part of Sitio 4 in Brgy. 21 San Agustin; Sitio 6 in Brgy. 22 San Guillermo; Sitios 1, 5 and 6 in Brgy. 23 Sta. Cecilia; and Brgy. 24 Sta. Monica.
As of April 6, 2021, Ilocos Norte currently has 1,166 COVID-19 cases. There are 231 active cases, with 78 from San Nicolas.
Governor Manotoc urged local government leaders to intensify community surveillance in their respective jurisdictions in order to prevent unnecessary mass gatherings and to ensure that anti-COVID health and safety standards are strictly followed.
“As we can see now in San Nicolas, one (social) event can lead to increased quarantine, to a lockdown, and a big headache for the whole community. We are hoping that we can all pay special attention to these super spreader events. We need to avoid it at all costs,” Governor Manotoc emphasized.
Moreover, the Task Force Salun-at is closely monitoring Bacarra town, after one positive patient infected six of his primary contacts from different barangays of the town.
“May isang COVID-19 case sa Bacarra na naka-infect ng anim mula sa iba’t-ibang barangay. Ang sanhi na naman nito ay pagtitipon. Ito po ang naidudulot ng social gathering sa atin. May this serve as a warning again na kung kinakailangan huwag na tayong pumunta sa ganitong okasyon,” Provincial Health Consultant Dr. Norman Rabago said.
As a quick response, Bacarra lady Mayor Fritzie D. Gapasin issued Executive Order No. 2021-013, declaring lockdown and containment in some parts of Brgy. 1 Sta. Rita, Brgy. 6 San Pedro I, Brgy. 10 San Vicente, Brgy. 15 San Roque I, and Brgy. 27-A Pungto, all in her town.
At present, the Task Force Salun-at is imposing a three-step containment strategy that includes household hard lockdown, aggressive contact tracing, and expanded testing, to ward off the spread of COVID-19 infections.
This three-step containment technique was also used in Pagudpud and Solsona, where the outbreak was successfully controlled last March.
“Luckily, wala na tayong bagong kaso na naitala sa Solsona at Pagudpud for the past 14 days. Buti na lang nag-comply din ang mga tao. This only proves na kapag sama-sama tayo, there is hope for us to mitigate the spread of the virus,” Dr. Rabago stressed.— (Angel V. Agliam, PGIN-CMO)
