Oton, Iloilo Mayor Carina Flores and eight Municipal Hall employees have contracted the dreaded coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
Jafet Salinas, spokesperson of the local government unit (LGU) of Oton, said Flores and the eight who tested positive for the disease are currently staying at the town’s quarantine facility.
Five of the infected workers are from the Accounting Office and three from the Mayor’s Office.
According to Salinas, Flores underwent swab testing after learning that one of her personnel got infected with COVID-19. The mayor yielded a positive result.
It’s not yet determined how the government workers acquired COVID-19 as they claimed that they have been strictly practicing the minimum health standards.
The Municipal Hall was placed under partial lockdown from Dec. 26 until Jan. 3, 2021 to pave the way for disinfection.
Salinas said contact tracing is ongoing.
Oton topped the list of towns in Iloilo province with the highest number of confirmed COVID-19 cases. As of Sunday, Dec. 27, it logged 354 infections, of which 303 have recovered, 8 have died, and 43 are considered active.
Pavia came in second with 263, followed by Passi City (191), Santa Barbara and Guimbal (121 each), Pototan (115), Cabatuan (114), and Tigbauan 103.
The province’s total case count now stands at 2,987, including 2,636 recoveries and 92 deaths.IMT
