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COVID-19 cases in Bacolod City hit double digits on Sunday, July 10, the Department of Health reported.Bacolod City had 14 new COVID-19 cases and Negros Occidental had 7, the DOH report said.Bacolod had three cases on July 9, twelve on July 8, seven on July 7, four on July 6, nine on July 5, and six on July 4, the DOH reported.The DOH said Bacolod City now has 88 active COVID-19 cases. The city government has resumed its COVID-19 vaccination and booster drive in Bacolod malls and barangays.Meanwhile, three staff at the Corazon Locsin Montelibano Memorial Regional Hospital in Bacolod have been hit with COVID-19 as of Sunday, Dr. Julius Drilon, CLMMRH chief, said.*

A man who was sitting at a sari-sari store was shot to death at Purok Bulak in Barangay Mandalagan, Bacolod City Saturday night, July 9.*BCPO photoAnother shooting incident occurred in Bacolod City on Saturday night, July 9.Killed was 46-year-old Jovanie Gonzalez of Purok Bulak in Barangay Mandalagan.The victim was sitting in front of a sari-sari store near his house when he was attacked by an unidentified man on board a motorcycle.The police said the suspect, who was wearing a black helmet and jacket, alighted from his motorcycle and shot the victim with an unknown firearm. He fled after the incident.Gonzalez succumbed to a lone gunshot wound at the back of his head.Police have yet to determine the motive of the killing, but the initial investigation indicated that...

An unidentified man robbed a pawnshop and carted away a gun and cellphone.*Valladolid PNP photoAn unidentified man robbed RD Pawnshop at Rizal Street in Brgy. Poblacion, Valladolid, Negros Occidental on Saturday, July 9.Based on the initial police investigation, the suspect gained entry to the pawnshop by destroying the roof and the ceiling of the comfort room.The .38 caliber revolver that was placed inside the vault room and the cellular phone from the drawer were missing.The estimated time of the incident was between 3 to 5 a.m., the police said.The police are still investigating the incident.*

More COVID-19 vaccinations key to return to normal, Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson says.* ADB photo“We want to go back to normal” and are calling on more residents to get vaccinated against COVID-19 to achieve this, Negros Occidental Gov.  Eugenio Jose Lacson said Sunday, July 10.“Down the road, we want to go back to normal, hence this call for more vaccination,” Lacson said in response to the appeal of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Friday for local officials to support the COVID-19 booster campaign in order to safely resume face-to-face classes and fully reopen the economy.Face to face classes in Negros Occidental have started but not at 100 percent, Lacson said, adding that he still has to consult with the schools division superintendent.Negros Occidental remains to be...

The recoveries from a drug bust at Brgy. Punta Taytay, Bacolod City, on Sunday, July 10.*BCPO photoMore than P500,000 worth of drugs were seized and three suspects were captured, including two suspected high-value targets, in a police buy-bust operation at Brgy. Punta Taytay, Bacolod City, early Sunday, July 10.Nabbed were  Cyril “Toto Cyril” Gepielago, 49,  Julius "Pioky” Londres, 42, and Pearly Mae “Liming” Panes, 30. Gepielago and Londres were tagged by the police as high-value individuals in the anti-drugs campaign.During the bust, the police recovered 77 grams of suspected shabu worth P523,600 from the suspects, the P1,000 in marked money, a sling bag, a coin purse, and P200 in cash believed to be proceeds from the sale of drugs.The suspects, who wil...

The Bacolod dengue awareness drive*The Bacolod City government has stepped up its dengue awareness and prevention  drive with the expected increase in cases during the rainy season, Dr. Grace Tan, chief of the City Health Office Environment Sanitation Division, said Sunday, July 10.Bacolod had 302 dengue cases and 6 deaths as of July 2, which are 196 percent higher than last year, a Bacolod City Epidemiological Surveillance Unit (BCESU) report showed.The fatalities were an 11-year-old male from  Singcang,  20-year-old female from Pahanocoy,  19-year-old male  from Sum-ag,  75-year-old male from Tangub, and a 13-year-old female and 7-year-old female from Mansilingan.The age range of those hit by dengue in Bacolod City was from 3 months old to 86...

Army map of the encounter site*The New People’s Army claimed on Friday, July 8, said that the alleged encounter with state troopers on July 6 in Binalbagan,  Negros Occidental, which claimed the lives of four of their  comrades, was a “massacre.”But the government forces refuted their claims, saying that the NPA is spreading lies to cover the setback following the death of their four members.Ka Juanito Magbanua, spokesperson of the NPA Apolinario Gatmaitan Command, claimed the encounter was “fake.”Their comrades were sick and resting when the soldiers raided their hut, he said.The state forces should have not neutralized the rebels because they were not well and could not fight, Magbanua added.Capt. Kim Apitong, officer-in-charge of the Public Affairs Offi...

Four Negros Occidental  local government units  are at  dengue alert threshold, Dr. Ernell Tumimbang, Provincial Health Officer, said  Friday, July 8.The four are Hinigaran, La Carlota City, Binalbagan and  Cadiz City, he said, citing a July 2 report on the dengue situation in Negros Occidental.The report shows that Cadiz City is nearing an epidemic threshold, he also said.The PHO only recommends fogging operations if an area is at an epidemic threshold.He said fogging operations were conducted in Hinigaran when it earlier hit the epidemic threshold.Negros Occidental has had 1,800 dengue cases and 10 deaths this year, he said.*

Vice President Sara Duterte with mayors Nicholas Yulo, Salvador Escalante, Renato Gustilo, Raymund Tongson, Alfredo Abelardo Benitez and Narciso Javelosa (l-r)* RTongson Facebook page photoPresident Ferdinand Marcos Jr. stressed the need to implement a booster campaign against COVID-19 at a virtual meeting with city mayors from around the country, including Negros Occidental, who gathered at the Rizal Hall in Malacañang Palace Friday night, July 8, Bacolod Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez said.The president also discussed plans towards the resumption of face-to-face classes, he added.The President delivered his message virtually while currently in isolation after testing positive for COVID-19.“He has a slight fever, but is otherwise okay,” Press Secretary Trixie Cruz-Angeles ...