(Corrects the name and first paragraph to refer to the Eastern component of Asia, East Asia)
COVID-19 infections in the Philippines increase
Manila and neighboring provinces return to blockade
The blockade from mid-March to May rocked the economy
By Neil Jerome Morales
MANILA, 6 Aug (Reuters) – On Thursday, the Philippines recorded an increase in coronavirus instances to outperform neighboring Indonesia as a country with the highest number of COVID-19 infections in East Asia.
An outbreak of virus cases in and around the capital Manila has led the government to reimpose a blockade affecting about a quarter of the country’s 107 million inhabitants.
The Philippines recorded 3,561 new infections on Thursday, bringing the total number of shown to 119,460. That’s more than 118,753 infection in Indonesia.
The death toll ranges from 28 to 2150, less than part of Indonesia’s 5,521 deaths, but is expected to do so after the recent outbreak.
President Rodrigo Duterte announced on Sunday night a two-week closure in and around Manila, representing two-thirds of the country’s economic output.
The restrictions, which came into effect Tuesday, were reinstated after an organization of doctors and nurses warned that the fitness formula could give way due to an increasing number of patients inflamed with the virus.
Public transport has been closed and house paintings have been installed whenever possible, and only a family-compatible user can pass out.
The Philippines imposed one of the strictest and most protracted blockades in and around the world from mid-March to May, bringing the economy to its knees in the early part of the year. (Report through Neil Jerome Morales; written through Jane Wardell; edited through Ed Davies)
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