Carla P. Gomez

COVID-19 positive cases in Negros Occidental that hit an all-time high of 4,039 in April after a sudden surge dropped to 1,748 in July and 144 in August, data from the Teresita L. Jalandoni Provincial Hospital (TLJPH) molecular laboratory in Silay City showed Tuesday, August 10.Provincial Administrator Rayfrando Diaz said the COVID-19 positivity rate of the TLJPH molecular laboratory tested samples in April was 16.03 percent and in August 6.59 percent.There was a surge in COVID-19 cases in April that triggered the increase in samples brought to the TLJPH for testing, but the numbers have since declined, he said.The TLJPH molecular laboratory data showed that positivity rate of samples it tested in January was 1.02 percent, February - .97 percent, March - 3.42 percent, April -16...

Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson has ordered the implementation of biosecurity measures to control and eradicate fly infestation in Negros Occidental poultry farms.Lacson, in Executive Order 21-41 Series of 2021 issued Tuesday, August 10, said there is a need to implement biosecurity measures to keep fly populations below economic injury levels or public health nuisance thresholds in order to protect the ecotourism industry in Negros Occidental and safeguard the health and safety of all Negrenses.It will be a mandatory requirement for all poultry operators and owners in Negros Occidental to submit to the biosecurity measures for the issuance of their business permits to operate, Lacson said.He said there have been reports of an unprecedented fly infestation in poultry farms in the prov...

Cristine Mansinares has been appointed regional director of the Department of Tourism in Western Visayas, the DOT announced Tuesday, August 10.“Expectations are high when managing Region 6, after all, it includes developing and overseeing tourism programs and operations in our country's crown-jewel: Boracay. Moreover, the task during the pandemic also involves vaccination drives for tourism workers,” Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo Puyat told DIGICAST NEGROS.It was in this difficult time where Mansinares showed her leadership capabilities as then OIC-regional director, and now regional director, Puyat said, adding: “I am confident that she will deliver and get the job done”.A tourism advocate, Mansinares brings to the DOT her 15 years of extensive experience and has proven ...

Photo from Em Ang FBBacolod City will use the 14,980 doses of Moderna vaccines it received Tuesday, August 10, for residents who fall under four categories of the national government’s priority list, City Administrator Em Ang said Tuesday, August 10It will be used for those under A1 - health care workers, A2 - senior citizens, A3 - persons with comorbidities and A5 - indigent population, she said.It cannot be used for A4 frontline economic workers, she said.However, if the workers belong to the indigent population, they can be vaccinated, she added.Bacolod City also received 10,000 Sinovac vaccines on Tuesday.Ang said she believes the COVID-19 cases in Bacolod City have dropped because the risk of the vulnerable sectors who have been vaccinated has been eliminated. ...

Negros Occidental Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson issued an executive order Tuesday, August 10, setting the implementing guidelines for migrant sugarcane workers travelling to Negros Occidental for crop year 2021-2022, which takes effect immediately.Lacson, in Executive Order 21-42 Series of 2021, said in the light of the forthcoming sugarcane crop season there will be an influx of migrant sugarcane workers entering the province hence the need to issue proactive guidelines to prevent the potential surge of COVID-19 cases in Negros Occidental.The guidelines state that individual planters must submit the list of migrant sugarcane workers they require for crop year 2021-2022 to their association.The list must state the names of the migrant sugarcane workers, their basic information, plac...

Charges will be filed against a 19-year-old who used fake documents to gain entry into Negros Occidental and two others who entered EB Magalona town without any S-PaSS (Safe, Swift and Smart Passage) in violation of COVID-19 protocols, Mayor Marvin Malacon said Monday, August 9.The 19-year-old who submitted a fake Red Cross COVID-19 negative RT-PCR test report, also used a certification that he is a resident of Barangay Alicante, EB Magalona, when he is in fact a resident of Cadiz City, Malacon said.The provincial government quarantined him on arrival in Negros Occidental on August 3 and he was swabbed for an RT-PCR test, Malacon said.The EB Magalona municipal government will file charges against the 19-year-old for violation of Republic Act 1132 or the "Mandatory Reporting of ...

Capitol file photoNegros Occidental has adequate hospital beds for coronavirus patients despite its having been placed under COVID-19 Alert Level 2 by the Department of Health, Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson assured Monday, August 9.The provincial government’s COVID designated hospitals in Valladolid and Cadiz City still have a lot of space for patients, he pointed out.Despite the DOH national biosurveillance report that placed Bacolod City under Alert Level 3 and Negros Occidental on Alert Level 2, the health department’s regional office classified both areas as low risk COVID-19 areas.The number of COVID-19 cases in Western Visayas showed a slow decline, the DOH 6 said.Lacson said during a Regional Development Council meeting Monday, DOH 6 Regional Director Adriano Suba...

The Sinovac and Moderna vaccines that arrived at the Iloilo International Airport on Monday, August 9.*Contributed photoNegros Occidental and Bacolod City will receive 20,000 vials of Sinovac and 2,140 vials of Moderna vaccines on Tuesday, City Administrator Em Ang said on Monday, August 9The COVID-19 national vaccination program is following priority groups to allocate the vaccines to those who need them the most because of the global scarcity of supply, Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire of the Department of Health (DOH) said.Bacolod and Negros Occidental will receive 10,000 Sinovac vials and 1,700 Moderna vials each, Ang said.A Sinovac vial is equivalent to one dose and one Moderna vial contains 14 doses, Ang said.They will arrive at the Bacolod–Silay Airport via ...

The Bacolod Public Information Office will be temporarily closed for disinfection from August 9 to 13 after 14 of its 20 personnel tested positive for COVID-19.The PIO, located at the Bacolod City Government Center, will reopen on August 16, OIC Public Information Officer Danny Dangcalan said Monday, August 9.Two more PIO employees tested negative Monday bringing the number of those who are COVID-free to six, he said.The 14 who tested positive are asymptomatic and in quarantine.Those who have inquiries may call the PIO Hotline at 0960-858-1131, City Mayor’s Office at O34-4350055 or 034-7070000, Emergency Operations Center at 034-4322749, or the city Inter-Agency Task Force at 0942-189-7127 (Sun), 0915-567-0411 (Globe) or 0961-593-8086 (Smart), Dangcalan said.Five securi...

Capitol file photoNegros Occidental Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson and Vice Governor Jeffery Ferrer will wait for the filing of certificates of candidacy (COCs) in October before they decide on their presidential bet for the May 2022 polls.This was disclosed by Lacson Monday, August 9, after three Negros Occidental mayors committed to support Davao Mayor Sara Duterte Carpio, the daughter of President Rodrigo Duterte, should she decide to run for president.Mayors Mark Golez of Silay City, Rhumyla Nicor Mangilimutan of La Castellana and Nadie Arceo of Hinigaran pledged to support the mounting call for the Davao mayor to run for president in 2022, retired PCol. William Senoron said last week.“It’s really up to mayors if they want to commit now,” Lacson said“We’ll see if Negros c...