By John Aldrin Casinas

The local government of Pasig City said that there was no confirmed case of the 2019 novel coronavirus acute respiratory disease (2019 nCoV ARD) in all local government hospitals in the city.

This, after a post on social media alleged that there was a patient at Pasig City General Hospital (PCGH) positive for the dreaded virus.

“Salungat sa mga kumakalat na balita sa social media, wala pong kumpirmadong kaso ng [2019 nCoV ARD] sa [PCGH] o anumang ospital ng Lokal na Pamahalaan ng Lungsod ng Pasig,” the Pasig Public Information Office (PIO) said Sunday.

No Person Under Investigation (PUI) was also confined in the city’s hospitals, it stressed.

The Pasig PIO has also reminded the public that only the Department of Health (DOH) could officially announce any confirmed case of the 2019 nCoV ARD in the country.

A Facebook post of a netizen shared by the Pasig City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (CDRRMO) on Saturday claimed that there was a positive case of the virus at PCGH.

According to the Pasig CDRRMO, the post was “fake news,” saying that they have called the doctors at the PCGH who said that there was no confirmed case nor PUI at the said hospital.

The DOH confirmed on Sunday the first fatality of the virus in the country, involving a 44-year-old Chinese man from Wuhan, China.

The foreigner, who died on Saturday for severe pneumonia, was the first confirmed fatality of the virus outside China, according to the World Health Organization.

It is also the second confirmed case of the deadly virus in the country, after the Health department confirmed the first case last week, involving a 38-year-old Chinese woman from Wuhan, China.

Amid the scare brought about by the disease, the Pasig PIO urged the public to remain vigilant and maintain the cleanliness at their respective homes and surroundings.

“Ang inyong kaligtasan at kalusugan ay lubhang napakahalaga sa amin. Ang pangunahing mga alituntunin sa pagtupad ng pagsugpo ng impeksyon at pagkalat ng anumang virus ay mahigpit na ipinatutupad sa ating mga ospital dito sa Pasig,” it said.