(UPDATED) Batanes Islands, long untouched by the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic, reported its first confirmed case of infection on Tuesday, September 29, 2020.

In a Facebook post, the Provincial Government of Batanes said a locally stranded individual (LSI), who returned to the islands via a Philippine Air Force flight on September 22, has tested positive for Sars-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19.

The patient has not developed any symptoms, but is under isolation at the Batanes Resort.

The local government unit (LGU) said all identified close contacts of the patient are being monitored by the Provincial Covid-19 Task Group.

Other LSIs who are under quarantine are also being observed.

In a previous post, the LGU said the first confirmed coronavirus-positive patient on the islands tested positive in a rapid test conducted at the Batanes General Hospital.

The patient, then dubbed as a suspect Covid-19 case, was made to undergo a confirmatory RT-PCR (reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction) test.

As of September 25, there were 92 persons under monitoring in the province and three suspect cases.

Batanes, an archipelagic province situated in the northernmost part of the Philippines, closed its borders as early as February 2020 and allowed only limited flights to its capital to keep the local population safe from the virus. (MVI/SunStar Philippines)