QC still tracing 1 co-passenger of PH’s 1st UK variant case

MANILA – Contact tracing is underway for one co-passenger of the first case of the B.1.1.7 SARS-CoV-2 variant (United Kingdom variant) who was reported to be a resident of Quezon City, the city’s chief executive said on Saturday.

In a Laging Handa presser, Mayor Joy Belmonte said the subject is among the eight co-passengers with an address in the city who were on the same flight as patient zero.

“Walo dun sa mga pasahero ay taga QC. Sa walo na taga QC, ang pito ay amin nang na contact trace, first- and second-generation contact tracing, at yung isa lamang nawawala kasi mali yung contact details na nilagay niya so hindi namin siya ma-contact. There’s one individual that is missing (Eight of the passengers are from QC. Of the eight, we have already traced seven of them, first- and second-generation contact tracing, while one is missing due to wrong contact details),” Belmonte said.

She said Quezon City’s Epidemiology and Surveillance Unit (CESU) tried to call the person’s contact number but it was wrong.

The CESU also went to the address written in the passengers’ contact details but they were told that the person is not at the indicated address.

Belmonte said they were trying to get additional information about the ‘’missing” passenger.

She said as of Saturday, the city government has already traced 143 individuals, including the close or first-generation contacts of the patient and his co-passengers from Quezon City.

Other close contacts include health workers and members of the Barangay Health Emergency Response Team (BHERT) who assisted and transported the patient from the hotel where he was quarantined upon arrival to the isolation facility.

Belmonte said the patient remains at the same isolation facility.

The second-generation contacts are those who had contact with the first-generation contacts.

She said as a precautionary measure, they have also subjected the patient’s family member to a swab test even though they never had contact with the patient since the day of his arrival in the country.

“More than half of them have already been swabbed and all of them are currently on quarantine pero wala pang test results na dumadating (but the test results have not been released),” Belmonte said.

She added that the patient’s girlfriend who traveled with him to Dubai has already been re-swabbed and continues to stay at the isolation facility. The swab test result is still pending.

Allaying residents’ fears, Belmonte noted that the situation is under control.

She, however, called on her constituents to continue to be vigilant, follow the imposed minimum health safety protocols, try to get the correct information, and not believe fake news.

She also asked QC residents to report to them in case they observe mass gatherings and people not wearing face masks by calling the QC hotline 122.