THE Provincial Inter-Agency Task Force (PIATF) has reported that 21 inmates in Negros Oriental were infected by the coronavirus.
Dr. Liland Estacion, PIATF chief, disclosed during a virtual briefing on December 26 that 21 prisoners were isolated at the custodial facility of the Dumaguete City Police Station.
An initial investigation by the PIATF showed that the virus may have come from two persons deprived of liberty (PDLs) remitted by the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency recently, who were discovered to have been positive for the virus ahead of others.
All the 21 PDLs are asymptomatic, according to Estacion.
Of the 76 new Covid-19 cases reported on December 23, 43 were recorded in Dumaguete City, 14 in Tanjay City, eight in Sibulan, four in Siaton, two in Guihulngan City and one each in Mabinay, Bindoy, Bacong, Ayungon and Valencia, Estacion said.
She recommended to the Dumaguete City Health Office that all police officers with direct contact with the 21 PDLs undergo swab testing.
Of the 908 confirmed Covid-19 cases in Negros Oriental, 169 are active, with 712 recoveries and 27 deaths.