Western Visayas health officials confirm local transmission in Bacolod City

The Department of Health in Western Visayas has confirmed local transmission with the first recorded death due to coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in the Negros Occidental capital city.

Local transmission, as defined by the World Health Organization, indicates that the source of infection is within the reporting location.

Aside from Bacolod, DOH-Region 6 said there's also a local transmission in the municipalities of Guimbal and Lambunao in Iloilo province.

"The increasing number of cases in the province, city or municipality of the region indicates that there's already a local transmission in some areas," the agency said.

DOH-Western Visayas, in its latest bulletin, said patient WV 23 is a 62-year-old female from Bacolod City with close contact to patient WV 7.

She died on March 31 and that the patient was among the three new positive cases in the region as of April 1.

With six cases, Bacolod City now ranks second in terms of the highest number of positive COVID-19 cases in the region, next to Iloilo province with seven.

The entire Western Visayas now has 25 confirmed COVID-19 cases.

Of which, five patients are in Aklan while there are three each in Iloilo City and Capiz and Negros Occidental has one case.

The provinces of Antique and Guimaras still have no confirmed cases.

The DOH said areas with local transmission are advised to strengthen the implementation of community quarantine as per Department Memorandum 2020-0122 dated March 14.

"We are appealing to the public to work hand-in-hand with the Department of Health," it said, adding that "in these trying times, we need to unite and harmonize our efforts to flatten the curve of COVID-19 cases." -- BAP, GMA News