MANILA, Philippines — Two more cops, a police lieutenant and a lieutenant colonel, mark the latest deaths linked to COVID-19 in the ranks of the Philippine National Police, good for the 45th casualty in the agency's death toll.
In a statement sent to reporters, Police Gen. Debold Sinas, PNP chief, said that the first patient was a 47-year-old police lieutenant assigned in Camp Crame, while the latter was a member of the PNP's legal service.
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Both officers passed away on Monday. The lieutenant tested positive for COVID-19 on March 12 and was confined at a private hospital in Pasig City. He later died due to severe pneumonia.
"On behalf of the PNP, we would like to give our condolences to the bereaved family and assures every assistance they needed," Sinas expressed. "The PNP leadership is doing everything to mitigate this virus especially on our personnel, as frontliners, one death is one too many."
The Philippine National Police on Saturday deployed an additional 5,000 officers around the so-called NCR+ bubble to enforce quarantine protocols amid the shift to modified enhanced community quarantine.
As of April 11, the PNP Health Service recorded a total of 227 new cases bringing the total number of cases to 17,405 with 2,430 active cases.
This, while the latest 196 personnel recovered from the virus brings the total recoveries to 14,931.
— Franco Luna