DAVAO CITY – This city has been placed under general community quarantine (GCQ) effective immediately until November 30, following the recent surge in the number of coronavirus disease (COVID-19). o
This was confirmed by Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque in a statement released on Friday morning.
Roque said Melquiades Feliciano, Deputy Chief Implementer of the National Task Force (NTF) Against COVID-19 for the cities and Bacolod and Cebu, has been assigned to head the Coordinated Operations to Defeat the Epidemic (CODE) teams that will be deployed in Davao City to assist in the response activities.
"A One Hospital Command Center will likewise be established in the city to ensure an efficient referral system as private hospitals are mandated to increase their ward bed occupancy by at least 20 percent to 30 percent," he said.
He said efforts will be made to address the shortage of nurses in health facilities and to provide additional high-oxygen cannulae, Favipiravir (Avigan), Remdesivir, medical equipment, among others.
Roque said accommodation establishments will be tapped to serve as quarantine facilities for health workers as well as the isolation of positive cases of COVID-19.
He said law enforcement agencies are directed to assist in the enforcement of granular lockdowns upon affected communities or clusters, and if necessary, deploy personnel in the city.
On Thursday night, Mayor Sara Z. Duterte released a statement, saying the city will abide by any order of the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) should it decide that Davao City needed to be placed under stricter quarantine.
National Task Force on COVID-19 Chief Implementer and Presidential Adviser on Peace Process Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr., said on Wednesday during the meeting of Regional IATF 11, he would recommend to place the city under GCQ to control the surge of COVID-19 cases in the city.
Last July, the city was placed under modified general community quarantine (MGCQ) after being placed in enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) and GCQ.
But Department of Health (DOH) Region 11 Director Dr. Annabelle Yumang said, during the RIATF 11 meeting, the number of COVID-19 cases started to make a surge after the city suspended curfew and the liquor ban last September.
Duterte, last October, issued an executive order reimposing the curfew and even made it earlier starting at 7 p.m.
Duterte also reimposed the 24-hour liquor ban in the city on November 2.
DOH 11 data showed that, as of November 19, the city had 1,874 active cases with 106 new patients recorded on Thursday night.
The data also bared, the city has already recorded 5,520 COVID-19 cases, of which, 3,401 have recovered, and 245 have died.