DAVAO CITY – Tagum City, Davao del Norte has recorded its first confirmed case of the COVID-19 Delta variant.
This was confirmed by City Health Officer Dr. Arnel Florendo in a Facebook post, a few minutes after the Department of Health (DOH) informed them Saturday, July 24.
Florendo did not detail how the Delta variant reached this city and its origin.
However, the City of Government of Tagum Facebook page stated that other information will be released in the coming days since they are still waiting for the specific details.
"And we still have 90 suspected cases of variants of interest under investigation and monitoring," Florendo said.
Aside from Delta variant, Florendo said the city also recorded 12 cases of the Alpha variant and 22 cases of the Beta variant.
The city government appealed to constituents to triple their guard against the Delta variant which is considered as the fast spreading strain of COVID-19.
PATIENT ZERO WAS FEMALE
A 22-year-old female patient with no recent travel history was the first confirmed local case of the Delta variant or B.1.617.2 in Tagum City, a city health official confirmed Sunday, July, 25.
Florendo said that health authorities believed the patient, whose index case could not be traced, could be considered a “community transmission.”
But he said that he has been directed to “reinvestigate” the case. “She is considered as a community transmission, but l have been given a mandate to reinvestigate. Probably, we will have a better idea after the reinvestigation tomorrow,” he said.
He added that since it’s a local transmission, local authorities believed there might have been cases of Delta variant spreading undetected in the city since the confirmation from DOH came late.
Despite the detection of Delta variant, Florendo added that it’s too early to tell if Tagum should be placed under Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) to stem the spread of the infection.
He said Tagum City Mayor Allan Rellon has created various groups to address the pandemic, including task force on enforcement of health protocols, provision of food assistance, contact tracing, education, and psychological and mental support for the positive patients. (with a report from Antonio L. Colina IV)