The provinces of Kalinga, Ifugao, Mountain Province, and Northern Samar have been placed under Alert Level 4 starting Friday.
The Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) approved the escalation of alert levels on Thursday, while also placing 15 more areas under Alert Level 3.
The said areas under Alert Level 3 are the following:
Luzon
- Apayao
- Puerto Princesa City
- Masbate
Visayas
- Siquijor
Mindanao
- Zamboanga del Norte
- Zamboanga Sibugay
- Lanao del Norte
- Davao de Oro
- Davao Oriental
- North Cotabato
- Sarangani
- Sultan Kudarat
- Surigao del Norte
- Maguindanao
- Basilan
The areas are placed under their respective alert levels until January 31, 2022, according to the IATF.
Under Alert Level 4, the following establishments and activities are prohibited:
- Face-to-face classes for basic education and higher education
- Indoor and outdoor contact sports
- Cinemas and movie houses
- Funfairs/peryas
- Karaoke bars, clubs, concert halls, and theaters
- Casinos, horse racing, cockfighting, and operation of cockpits, lottery and betting shops
- Gatherings among individuals from different households
The following indoor areas, however, will be allowed to operate at 10% capacity, while outdoor areas will be allowed at 30% as long as they have a Safety Seal Certification:
- Venues for meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions
- Permitted venues for social events, such as parties, wedding receptions, engagement parties, wedding anniversaries, debut and birthday parties, family reunions, and bridal or baby showers
- Libraries, archives, museums, galleries, parks, exhibits, and other tourist destinations
- Amusement parks and theme parks
- Recreational venues
Under Alert Level 3, the following establishments are not allowed to operate:
- Face-to-face classes for basic education
- Contact sports
- Funfairs/perya
- Karaoke bars, clubs, concert halls, theaters,
- Casinos, horse racing, cockfighting, operation of cockpits, lottery and betting shops, and other gaming establishments not authorized by the IATF
- Gatherings from members of different households
Meanwhile, the following indoor activities are permitted with a 30% capacity, while 50% for outdoor venues:
- Individual outdoor exercise
- Amusement parks or theme parks
- Meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions
- Wedding parties, engagements, debut, birthday parties
- Tourist attractions, such as libraries, archives, museums, parks, and more
- Cinemas
- In-person classes for higher education and technical-vocation education and training
- Recreational venues
- Dine-in services
This comes as the country recorded 31,173 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday, with active cases at 275,364. The country's total caseload has reached 3,324,478, according to the Department of Health.
