NATIVIDAD, Pangasinan — A 29-year-old female resident of Barangay Cacandungan here is the first coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) case in this town.
In a statement posted on Facebook on Saturday, Mayor Rosita Rafael said the patient had a travel history to Sta. Rosa, Laguna.
"The swab testing of the patient was done at the Tarlac-Pangasinan-La Union Expressway (TPLEX) Urdaneta drop-off point before she was brought by the provincial bus in our municipality on July 2," she said.
On July 4, the local government unit (LGU) received the positive reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test result of the patient from the Baguio General Hospital and Medical Center, although she is asymptomatic.
"Currently, she is housed at the Natividad Isolation Facility together with her two children who are now under monitoring while waiting for the RT-PCR test results," the mayor's statement read.
The Local Contact Tracing Team together with the Barangay Health Emergency Response Team (BHERT) has immediately conducted contact tracing in the barangay to determine who else the patient had close contact with.
The LGU has placed Barangay Cacandungan under lockdown starting at 8 p.m. on July 4 and only those residents accessing essential goods and services are allowed to go outside their homes.
Meanwhile, the municipal government has urged its constituents and the public to observe the minimum health protocols such as the proper wearing of face masks and safe physical distancing among others, to prevent Covid-19 from further spreading. (PNA)
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