This Week in Iloilo (March 1 to 7, 2020)

Visitors to the city will enjoy nice weather this week [1]. Wear lighter clothes as the maximum temperature this week will be 32°C. There will be light morning showers on some days, but the sky is expected to be clear during the rest of the day. If you plan on roaming around the city, do it a little later in the day to avoid too much heat and bring a water bottle to avoid dehydration. It’s also nice to stroll in the city’s public areas like the Iloilo Esplanade during sunset to meet locals.

Tricycles operating the streets of Iloilo will be eradicated; this is the commitment of the traffic management office of the city [2]. While they recognized that it would be hard to totally remove all tricycles, the Public Safety and Transportation Management Office (PSTMO) vowed to level up its campaign. This is after the Department of Interior and Local Government directed to strictly implement the law against tricycles and pedicabs operating on national highways.

The Iloilo Provincial Government is scaling up its campaign against COVID-19 by purchasing infrared thermometers [3]. Iloilo’s health office is currently looking for suppliers of the equipment which will be used in ports and other areas of entry to the province. The infrared thermometer will be used to check the temperature of people entering Iloilo. Ship passengers going to the city are also ordered to fill out health declaration cards to check if they have symptoms of COVID-19 or have recent travel history in countries covered by the travel ban.

Expect no crowded events in the city again this month as precautionary measures against COVID-19 still continue [4]. Just recently, the city government canceled the yearly sailing event, Iloilo Paraw Regatta. Authorities continue to advise locals and residents to avoid crowded places especially when they have fever, cough and colds, which are among the apparent symptoms of COVID-19.

Visit Yoorekka for more updates on Iloilo.