| COVID-19 pandemic in Mimaropa | |
|---|---|
| Disease | COVID-19 |
| Virus strain | SARS-CoV-2 |
| Location | Mimaropa |
| First outbreak | Wuhan, Hubei, China |
| Index case | Puerto Princesa |
| Arrival date | March 20, 2020 (5 years, 6 months, 4 weeks and 1 day) |
| Confirmed cases | 48,267 |
| Active cases | 60 |
| Recovered | 46,904 |
Deaths | 1,303 |
| Government website | |
| mimaropa | |
TheCOVID-19 pandemic in Mimaropa is part of theworldwide pandemic ofcoronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused bysevere acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The virus reachedMimaropa on March 20, 2020, when the first case of the disease was confirmed inPuerto Princesa.
The first COVID-19 case in Mimaropa was confirmed on March 20.[1] The case involved a 26-year-old male Australian tourist inPalawan who had already left the province at the time of confirmation. The tourist arrived in Manila on March 5 before taking a flight to Puerto Princesa. The man stayed for five days in a resort inSan Vicente prior to seeking medical consultation after he exhibited symptoms. He was brought to the Palawan Provincial Hospital in Puerto Princesa for sample collection for testing on March 14. The tourist managed to secure clearance after two days to take a "mercy flight" to get out of the province to Clark after his fever subsided.[2]
Marinduque confirmed its first case on March 23, that of a case of resident ofTorrijos who came to the province on March 14 from Metro Manila.[3]
The first case ofOccidental Mindoro was confirmed on March 27 in the town ofSan Jose which involved an 84-year-old man who died at the San Jose District Hospital on March 22, on the same day the patient was admitted.[4] The first case inOriental Mindoro on the other hand, that of a 1-year-old girl tested inCalapan, was also confirmed in the same day.[5]
Romblon's first case was that of a German national in San Jose, Romblon who had no recent travel history outside the country but has visited Metro Manila. The patient was confirmed to have tested positive for COVID-19 on March 28 and was admitted to a hospital inAklan province inWestern Visayas.[6]
In June 2020, cases were recorded in Palawan, outside the independent city of Puerto Princesa. Cases have been reported among previously stranded individuals who've since returned to their hometowns inCoron andSofronio Española.[7][8]
Theplebiscite to ratify legislation that proposes the partition ofPalawan into three smaller provinces scheduled for May 2020 was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The province provincial legislature has called for a special session and is expected to pass a resolution allowing GovernorJose Alvarez to ask theCOMELEC to postpone the plebiscite. Anti-partition advocacy group One Palawan has also called for the postponement of the plebiscite reasoning the₱80 million ($1.6 million) budget allocated for the plebiscite could be used to fund the provincial government's efforts against COVID-19.[9]
The whole of Mimaropa region was included under theenhanced community quarantine (ECQ) imposed on Luzon. Quarantine measure in the region was downgraded to general community quarantine (GCQ) on May 1. However the town ofSan Jose, Occidental Mindoro remained under ECQ until at least May 15 even as the rest of the province downgraded to GCQ.[10]
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