55 more Delta variant cases reported; Philippines’ total now 119

Fifty-five additional cases of the highly contagious Delta coronavirus variant have been detected in the Philippines over the weekend, the health department reported.

Data released by the Philippine Genome Center showed that the Philippines recorded a total of 119 cases of the Delta variant—first detected in India—as of Saturday, July 24.

Out of the total Delta variant cases in the country, 12 are classified as active cases, 103 recovered, and four deceased.

The variant has been widely reported to be more contagious than the original strain, prompting the government to reimpose stricter quarantine restrictions such as longer curfew hours.

The same data showed that there were 94 additional cases of the Alpha variant, first detected in the United Kingdom. This brought the total to 1,773 which includes 19 active cases; 1,636 recoveries; and 116 deaths.

In terms of the Beta variant which was first detected in South Africa, the Philippines reported 179 new cases on Saturday to hit 2,019. This includes 19 active cases; 1,926 recoveries; and 72 deaths.

There were also nine additional cases of the Theta or P.3 variant, which was first detected in the Philippines. Total caseload of the variant was recorded at 244, including one active case; 240 recoveries; and three deaths.

In total, the Philippines on Sunday, July 25, reported 5,479 new confirmed cases of COVID-19, bringing the total caseload to 1,548,755. This includes 54,262 active cases; 1,467,269 recoveries; and 27,224 deaths. — BM, GMA News