Around 350,000 devotees attended the Feast of the Black Nazarene, the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) reported Monday.

In an interview with dzBB, NCRPO spokesperson Lt. Col. Dexter Versola said: “When we conducted the security update a while ago (around 6:30 pm), our estimate was that around 350,000 attended the Feast of the Black Nazarene.”

“The total deployment of the MPD (Manila Police District) was around 5,600. Of this number, 3,000 plus personnel were deployed at Quiapo church, while 1,900 were deployed in Quirino Grandstand. The rest are guarding checkpoints, they’re the force multipliers,” he added.

Versola said the event would finish at 11 pm, but police forces would remain to ensure that devotees could go home safely.

Combining data from the Department of Health (DOH) and the Philippine Red Cross (PRC), there were 1,194 devotees who sought medical attention as of 1 pm Monday.

"In summary, from January 6 to 9, 2023 a total of 642 consultations were reported, managed, and addressed from the days of preparation to the celebration of the Feast of the Black Nazarene," said the DOH.

"A summary of patients catered to by PRC is at 552, as of 1 pm," said the PRC.

DOH said majority of case were cardio-related (e.g. hypertension, hypotension, chest pain, blood pressure monitoring) at 577.

DOH said there were also four persons were hospitalized, with three discharged and one under observation. Jaspearl Tan/DMS