Local government units (LGUs) of Negros Occidental located with borders with neighboring Negros Oriental has tightened their monitoring of the entry of pork and pork products.

Sherwin Sapian, executive assistant of Hinobaan Mayor Daph Reliquias. on Wednesday said the municipal government has reinforced personnel at the provincial border in Barangay Sangke, the last barangay (village) of the province in the south.

Sapian also said they consider the border as the “first line of defense against African swine fever (ASF).”

“Personnel assigned at the border has orders from the mayor to arrest anyone trying to treacherously bring in pork and pork products through the border from Basay town, the last municipality of Negros Oriental,” he added.

Sapian said as of May 24, Hinobaan had not recorded cases of hog cholera.

Prices of pork and pork products have remained stable in public markets of Negros Occidental, he added.

In Kabankalan City, Mayor benjie Miranda said the city government has already an existing checkpoint in its border with the town of Mabinay in Negros Oriental.

Additional personnel will also be deployed to augment employees assigned there, Miranda added.

He said animal checkpoints have also been put up at the city’s border with Himamaylan City to the north and at its border with other LGUs in the sixth district south of the city.

Rayfrando Diaz, provincial administrator, said the Negros Occidental Animal Biosecurity Incident Management Team has set guidelines to arrest the spread of trans-boundary animal diseases in the province.

Diaz added that guidelines on proper disposal of dead pigs and contaminated pork have also been issued.

The incident management team is also updating the mapping of hog cases with the help of Disaster Risk Reduction Management personnel.

The Provincial Veterinary Office estimated the accumulated damage to the Negros Occidental hog industry at P66.5 million as pig deaths continued to rise on Tuesday.

Hog deaths from various diseases in Negros Occidental have increased to U,UP9.