Officials in Cebu are checking if the first confirmed case of 2019 n-CoV in the Philippines roamed around or just passed by the province, Friday.
The Department of Health confirmed on Thursday the first case of 2019 novel coronavirus in the Philippines, who is a Chinese woman from Wuhan, China.
DOH Secretary Francisco Duque III said that the 38-year-old Chinese woman under investigation tested positive for the 2019-nCoV.
“DOH is confirming that a 38-year-old female patient under investigation or PUI is positive for the novel coronavirus 2019-nCoV after her lab results arrive today from the Victorian Infectious Disease Reference laboratory in Melbourne, Australia,” Duque said during the live press briefing of DOH.
Authorities are checking if the Philippines’ first novel coronavirus patient had stayed or merely passed by Cebu province, a local official said Friday.
Duque said the confirmed case arrived from Wuhan, China, via Hongkong last January 21, 2020. The patient was admitted to one of the government hospitals on January 25 after experiencing a mild cough.
Officials check if first 2019 n-CoV patient in PH roamed in Cebu
“Iyong information na sinabi sa amin kahapon, napadaan lang siya [sa Cebu]. But sinisiguro lang na talagang hindi siya nag-stay at kung nag-stay siya, san siya nag-stay, may mga nakasama ba siya doon, at kung part ba siya ng isang tour group,” said the Cebu’s port commissioner Mike Acebedo Lopez.
(The information given to us yesterday said the patient just passed by Cebu. But we want to make sure that she did not stay there and if she did, where she stayed, who is she with, and if she was part of a group tour.)
Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia said Thursday that travelers from China would be placed on a 14-day quarantine in Cebu to prevent the spread of the 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV).
Meanwhile, Chinese carriers suspended their direct flights to Aklan, where famed Boracay island is located, Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines spokesman Eric Apolonio said.
Cebu Pacific and Philippine Airlines also announced they reduced flights to China in response to the 2019 new coronavirus outbreak.