LAOAG CITY, July 22 (PIA) – Starting July 23, the City of Batac and eight municipalities in Ilocos Norte will be placed under localized Modified Enhanced Community Quarantine (MECQ).

In the newly-issued Executive Order No. 139-21, Governor Matthew Marcos Manotoc declares the City of Batac and municipalities of Dingras, Dumalneg, Marcos, Pagudpud, Paoay, Pasuquin, and Solsona under a stricter community quarantine level due to sudden upsurge of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases in the said areas.

“There has been an upsurge in these areas as indicated by unofficial Provincial Department of Health (DOH) data,” Manotoc said in his EO.

Stated in this order, movement of people within the city and municipalities are limited only to work, accessing of essential goods and services, and individual exercise.

Movement for leisure is emphasized not to be allowed.

This also directs individuals below 18 years old, above 65 years old, and those with comorbidities to remain in their homes at all times except for essential purposes.

Curfew and liquor ban are now at 9:00 p.m. to 4:00 a.m. except for authorized person outside residence (APOR) who will be preforming official duties during the curfew hours.

For gatherings, non-essential gatherings are prohibited except for the provision of critical government services, critical humanitarian causes, and religious gatherings with prior authorization of the provincial government or the local government unit while adhering to the prescribed minimum public health standards.

Moreover, indoor religious gatherings are limited to 25 persons and not more than 30 percent of the venue capacity. However, Manotoc strongly encourages that all events must be done outdoors or online to ensure no further exposure among the residents.

Meanwhile, the City of Laoag is still under MECQ and the rest of the province is under Modified General Community Quarantine (MGCQ) while waiting for the response from the Inter-agency Task Force on the Management of Emerging Infectious Disease (IATF-MEID) on Manotoc’s request to put the whole province of Ilocos Norte under General Community Quarantine (GCQ).

As of July 21, the active cases on the MECQ-declared areas are as follow: City of Batac- 185; Dingras- 47; Dumalneg- 15; Marcos- 24; Pagudpud- 42; Paoay- 56; Pasuquin- 34; and Solsona- 14.

Total active cases in Ilocos Norte are now at 1624, recoveries at 4164, death cases at 103, and total confirmed cases have reached 5891. (JCR/AMB/MJTAB PIA ILOCOS NORTE)