DAVAO CITY (MindaNews / 20 July) – The city government lifted effective 12 p.m. Monday, July 20, the “hard lockdown” imposed in Barangay 23-C, one of the barangays (villages) in the city classified as “very high risk” due to the high cases of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) there.
In a statement, the local government bared that a series of reverse transcription – polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) tests were conducted from July 15 to July 17 in seven puroks (zones) of Barangay 23-C.
The city government placed Barangay 23-C on hard lockdown, the only one out of the 182 barangays in Davao City, last July 4 after 17 residents tested positive for COVID-19.
“The results suggested that the more than two weeks of enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) be downgraded to purok or household lockdowns, targeting the location of the positive cases,” the city government said.
The local government, however, has not yet disclosed the number of individuals swabbed during the three-day RT-PCR tests, as well as the specific communities or households that will be placed on hard lockdown in the barangay.
It added that security and health protocols will still continue to be “strictly observed” during the purok or household lockdown, noting that food and other basic necessities will be given to the residents in the affected areas.
“These actions are being taken to prevent the massive spread of the killer virus in and outside of the area with confirmed positive cases,” the city government said.
In a previous interview over the government-run Davao City Disaster Radio, Mayor Sara Duterte said that the situation in Barangay 23-C is “very severe,” stressing that many COVID-19 patients in the city came from the area.
Barangay 23-C is among the three barangays considered to be a hotspot for COVID-19 in the city. It has been tagged by the local government as “very high risk” as of the July 18 to 24 barangay classification.
Previously, the barangay has recorded a total of 88 residents infected by the virus, with two reported deaths. The youngest case in the barangay was a 25-day-old baby, while the oldest was 75 years old.
As of July 19, the Department of Health (DOH) – Davao has recorded a total of 28 new cases in the region, bringing the total number of COVID-19 positives to 964.
Of the new cases, 15 were from Davao City, four each from Davao del Norte and Davao Oriental provinces, two each from Davao de Oro and Davao Occidental provinces, and one from Davao del Sur.
Davao City still has the highest number of COVID-19 cases in the region with 686 positives, 232 of which are still active cases.
Davao region has 392 COVID-19 active cases. (Warren Elijah E. Valdez / MindaNews)