By Dolly Yasa and Glazyl Y. Masculino
BACOLOD City – Public sector workers were among the new COVID-19 cases in Bacolod City and province of Negros Occidental.
The Central Negros Electric Cooperative (Ceneco) main office was closed starting Monday until Tuesday for disinfection after five employees were infected, according to Atty. Dan Pondevilla, Ceneco project supervisor and acting general manager.
Three of the five patients are from the engineering department, one from the cash division and the other is from the billing section.
In a public advisory, Ceneco management said that “as part of the management commitment to ensure the safety of the employees and the member-consumers (MCOs), the Bacolod Ceneco main office will be closed for disinfection starting Monday April 19 – April 20, 2021, Tuesday.
Emergency services and helpline units will be available 24/7 to accommodate power-related concerns.
Meanwhile, the Bacolod Public Information Office at the Bacolod Government Center will be closed for five days for disinfection starting Monday after a staff contracted the virus.
Bacolod Public Information Officer Danny Dangcalan said the rest of the staff will be swabbed.
Dangcalan also clarified that the concerned staff was already isolated last Friday after being swabbed and was not around during the vaccination of Mayor Evelio Leonardia, Saturday at the lobby of the BGC that was covered by the media.
Meanwhile, the Bacolod City Police Office (BCPO) has two active cases of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
Police Lieutenant Liberty Indiape, BCPO information officer, said that the two COVID-infected personnel contracted the virus last week and were already transferred to a quarantine facility.
Indiape said that one of them suffered cough while the other was asymptomatic.
A swab test is being conducted by the BCPO, especially when personnel experience any symptoms.
Indiape said they were among the local cases here since both were exposed to the public as they were deployed in the streets.
These are only the COVID cases recorded by the BCPO this year, she said.
Meanwhile, Indiape said that seven police trainees who are undergoing Field Training Program (FTP) here also tested positive for COVID.
Indiape, however, said they were not organic personnel of the BCPO but were only assigned to Police Station 1 under the supervision of Police Regional Office -6.