The Taguig City government said the first Delta variant case recorded by its health unit was a Taguig-bound returning overseas Filipino worker (OFW).
The Delta variant is a highly contagious strain of SARS-CoV-2, the virus which causes the coronavirus disease (COVID-19).
In a weekly video report released by the Taguig city government on July 16, Clarence Santos, head of the Taguig Safe City Task Force, announced Taguig’s first case of Delta variant among Taguig residents.
“Ayon po sa report ng ating City Epidemiology and Disease Surveillance Unit o CEDSU, as of July 12, may nakita po tayong 73 kaso ng mga variant ng COVID-19 dito sa Taguig. Ayon sa report, meron isa po tayong kaso ng Delta variant, o yung nanggaling po sa India (According to a report by our City Epidemiology and Disease Surveillance Unit or CEDSU, as of July 12, we have seen 73 cases of the COVID-19 variants in Taguig. According to the report, we have one case of Delta variant, which originated from India),” he said.
The weekly video report on Taguig COVID-19 cases and vaccination rollout covered the period July 10 to 16.
The video report stated that of the 73, Taguig has one Delta variant, 26 Alpha variants including two recent cases detected between June 3 and 7; and 46 Beta variants including three cases last detected between June 4 and 5. It did not indicate any information about the Delta variant case.
Santos added, “Ayon din sa balita ngayong araw , nag-announce ang ating DOH o Department of Health na may 16 na bagong diskubreng kaso ng Delta variant sa Pilipinas na kung saan 11 dito ay nakumpirma na local transmissions o nakita na sa ating mga komunidad. (According also to a news report today, the DOH or Department of Health announced that there are 16 newly discovered cases of Delta variant in the Philippines in which 11 are confirmed to be local transmissions or already seen in our communities).”
In a statement issued Monday, the Taguig City government said, “The single and isolated reported case of the Delta variant from a Taguig-bound returning OFW was detected as early as May while the OFW was undergoing the required quarantine upon his arrival in the country. The patient was not released from quarantine until he recovered, and was never able to set foot in Taguig when he was still infected with the virus.”
The city government added, “Even before any case of the Delta variant was detected in the country, the Taguig Safe City Task Force formed Special Task Group Delta Force to prepare for the possibility of local transmission of the said variant in the community. To date, none of those who have been genome sampled was found to have the Delta variant.”
"We continue to remain vigilant and implement the Prevent-Detect-Isolate-Treat-Reintegrate strategy against all COVID-19 variants to ensure the continued protection of Taguigeños," said Dr. Jun Sy, CEDSU head.