MANILA, Philippines — The number of individuals in the country being monitored for possible novel coronavirus acute respiratory disease (2019-nCoV ARD) more than doubled overnight to 80 people as of yesterday from only 36 on Sunday.

The figure included eight individuals believed to have had close contact with the first nCoV fatality in the Philippines. The eight have been placed under quarantine. They were part of the 74 who may have come into contact with the victim, a 43-year-old Chinese tourist from Wuhan in China’s Hubei province.

The 66 others have been advised to undergo home quarantine for 14 days by the Department of Health.

DOH Epidemiology Bureau director Ferchito Avelino said at a press conference they were able to identify the eight “people under investigation” or PUI from among the “close contacts” of the fatality and his partner.

“They are four hotel staff and four passengers,” he said.

The couple arrived in Cebu on Jan. 21 on Cebu Pacific flight 5J241 via Hong Kong and went to Dumaguete on Cebgo flight DG6519 the next day. They then took a Philippine Airlines flight to Manila.

The two were brought to San Lazaro Hospital as the woman had a cough while the man was manifesting fever.

Avelino stressed it is extremely important for close contacts to come forward and inform a health provider so they can be given appropriate management.

The first fatality in the Philippines – and outside China – was the 43-year-old male tourist who succumbed to severe pneumonia. His 38-year-old partner was the first case of nCoV infection recorded in the Philippines.

Health Secretary Francisco Duque III noted the “substantial increase” in the number of PUIs largely due to “strengthened surveillance system and contact tracing” being done by the Epidemiology Bureau.

Duque also attributed the increase to the expansion of the coverage of the term PUIs to include not only people from Wuhan but travelers from the entire province of Hubei as well.

“We have also expanded the PUI category coverage to the whole of China, following the recent imposition of travel ban to mainland China, including Hong Kong and Macau,” he said.

He also emphasized there is still no “local transmission” of nCoV in the Philippines.

“It is very clear and I categorically state that the two cases are imported cases and that statistics are for China. For us, it is zero local transmission,” he added.

Cases breakdown

DOH data show there are now 80 PUIs in the country, 67 of whom are currently in isolation. Ten others have been discharged under strict monitoring.

Included in the 80 cases are the couple and the Chinese man who tested negative for nCoV but died of pneumonia.

Data also stated that 27 of the 80 cases came from Metro Manila; 15 from Central Luzon; 11 from Central Visayas; eight from Western Visayas; five each from Northern Mindanao and Davao; four from Mimaropa; and one each from Cagayan Valley, Ilocos and Eastern Visayas.

According to DOH Undersecretary Eric Domingo, the country’s first nCoV fatality did not have “underlying condition” but he was found positive for a “mix of bacteria and virus.” It was Domingo who revealed that PUIs numbered 36 as of Sunday.

He said only the samples collected from the woman were submitted to a laboratory in Melbourne, Australia because results of the preliminary tests done on her at the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine were “suggestive” of nCoV.

“We only had six slots for the laboratory in Australia so we added the specimens taken from the women ... She had the bigger chance of turning positive for the virus,” he maintained.

The man’s samples were examined at the RITM.

In Tarlac City, Mayor Cristy Angeles said five Chinese missionaries and a Filipino have been confined at the Tarlac provincial hospital under quarantine as PUIs.

She appealed to her constituents to “please stay calm and do not panic,” as she cited the need to confine the “five foreigners” and the Filipino initially in Jecsons Medical Center for cough and fever and later at the Tarlac provincial hospital. It was not clear if the six were among the PUIs on the DOH’s record.

An advisory from the Tarlac City government said the six showed signs “symptomatic for corona virus,” prompting health authorities to have them quarantined, citing record of their flight layover in Hong Kong.

“Specimens were taken for testing to check if positive or negative,” Angeles said.

City health officer Dr. Carmela Go “has been coordinating with the Provincial Epidemiologist and Surveillance Unit,” according to the advisory.

Meanwhile, the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) – upon DOH’s request – has ordered the police to assist in the contact tracing and quarantine of people with symptoms of the nCoV. -With Ding Cervantes, Emmanuel Tupas