COVID-19 hits Batanes again after a month being virus-free
MANILA, Philippines — An 82-year-old man returning to Batanes from Bacoor, Cavite became the province’s third case of COVID-19, a month after it was cleared of the disease.
The provincial government of Batanes said the man is currently isolated at Batanes Resort while “extensive” contact tracing is being conducted.
Three of his relatives who returned Wednesday to Basco, Batanes with him onboard a SkyPasada plane tested negative for the highly-infectious disease.
Batanes’ local government reminded the public not to panic as all returning residents immediately undergo screening for COVID-19 at Basco Airport and are sent to isolation facilities if they have symptoms of the disease.
Batanes recorded its first two cases of the new coronavirus in September and October after nearly eight months of being free from the virus.
The first patient in the northernmost province of the country was a locally-stranded individual returning to Batanes onboard an Air Force plane. The second patient was on the same aircraft.
Since the coronavirus outbreak began in the country, Batanes had been closed off to tourists, unless they are willing to undergo a 14-day quarantine in the province first.
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