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COVID-19: What we know about the 7 clusters in Singapore

A security officer at Changi Airport's Terminal 3 seen wearing a face mask on 6 February 2020. (PHOTO: Dhany Osman / Yahoo News Singapore)
A security officer at Changi Airport's Terminal 3 seen wearing a face mask on 6 February 2020. (PHOTO: Dhany Osman / Yahoo News Singapore)

Last updated on 12 March, 9pm

SINGAPORE — Of the 187 coronavirus cases detected in Singapore as of 12 March, seven clusters have been identified.

In all, over 100 cases are linked to these clusters:

  1. Chinese health products shop Yong Thai Hang along Cavan Road (inactive)

  2. Grand Hyatt Singapore hotel in Orchard (inactive)

  3. Seletar Aerospace Heights construction site

  4. The Life Church and Missions Singapore in Paya Lebar, which is also linked to the Grace Assembly of God church at both branches in Tanglin and Bukit Batok via a Chinese New Year family gathering

  5. Wizlearn Technologies along 10 Science Park Road

  6. 15 February private dinner function at SAFRA Jurong

  7. Boulder+ at the Aperia Mall at 12 Kallang Avenue

A total of 96 patients have fully recovered and have been discharged while nine remain in the intensive care unit.

Out of the over 100 local transmissions, nine have no established links to previous cases or travel history to mainland China.

Yong Thai Hang medicinal shop: 9 cases

The first local cluster to emerge was at Yong Thai Hang, which is popular with Chinese tourists.

The infections are believed to have originated from a group of Guangxi tourists who visited Singapore last month. Two group members were confirmed by the Chinese authorities to have carried the virus.

Among the local cases is a 32-year-old Singaporean tour guide who brought the group to the shop. She first had symptoms on 29 January. Her 40-year-old husband was also infected. He worked at Diamond Industries Jewellery Company at Harbour Drive, which was visited by the same tour group from Guangxi.

Also infected was a 28-year-old Singapore permanent resident who worked at the shop. Her 45-year-old Singaporean husband, who works as a private-hire driver, their six-month-old son, as well as their 44-year-old Indonesian maid later tested positive for the virus.

Three other Singaporean shop staff also fell ill to the virus – a 36-year-old man and two women aged 40 and 48.

Grand Hyatt Singapore: 3 cases

A private business meeting by British firm Servomex held at the Grand Hyatt Singapore from 20 to 22 January involved 109 employees: 94 foreigners and 15 Singaporeans.

The original source of the infections has not been established.

Three people in Singapore tested positive for the virus – two Singaporean men aged 27 and 51 and a 38-year-old woman who is a Singapore permanent resident. They first had symptoms between 21 and 29 January.

The 51-year-old man travelled to Malaysia from 23 January to 2 February, while the woman was in Johor Bahru from 25 to 28 January.

Apart from the three locally detected cases, at least four foreign participants tested positive after they returned home – a 41-year-old Malaysian man, two South Korean men, aged 36 and 38, as well as a 53-year-old British man.

The Malaysian reportedly passed the virus on to his sister, 40, and mother-in-law, 65.

Meanwhile, the Briton became known as a “super-spreader” in media reports. After the Grand Hyatt meeting, he spent several days at a French ski resort, where 11 Britons were infected with the virus. Five cases were diagnosed back in the UK, five in France and one in Spain.

Seletar Aerospace Heights: 5 cases

Two Bangladeshi men, both 39 and work pass holders, were the first pair linked to the site to test positive for the virus on 8 and 10 February, respectively.

The duo lived at separate lodgings but worked on the same site along Seletar Aerospace Heights.

The first worker started having symptoms on 1 February and went to a general practitioner clinic two days later, before going to Changi General Hospital (CGH) on 5 February. He went for a follow-up appointment at Bedok Polyclinic on 7 February and was thereafter admitted to the intensive care unit at the CGH, before being transferred to the National Centre for Infectious Diseases (NCID).

The second worker first had symptoms on 6 February and went to a general practitioner clinic the next day. He went to NCID on 10 February.

Subsequently, three other male compatriots linked to the site tested positive on 12, 13 and 15 February, respectively.

The Life Church and Missions Singapore: 10 cases

In all, eight locally transmitted cases and two imported cases were linked to The Life Church and Missions Singapore, along Paya Lebar Road.

The imported cases are a married couple from Wuhan, both 56, who arrived in Singapore on 19 January and developed symptoms five days later. The couple had stayed at their family home along Lorong Lew Lian in Upper Serangoon and also visited the church while they were here.

Among the locally transmitted cases are a 53-year-old man and two women, aged 39 and 52, all of whom are Singaporeans. They started having symptoms between 23 January and 3 February.

The man had been in Malaysia on 6, 11 and 17 January, while the 39-year-old woman was in Malaysia from 22 to 29 January.

Three of the local transmissions are a 54-year-old Singaporean man who travels frequently to Malaysia for work purposes, his 58-year-old wife and a 75-year-old Singaporean woman. They tested positive for the virus between 19 and 23 February.

The 58-year-old woman was tested via a first-of-its-kind tool to detect antibodies in her blood; she had already recovered from the infection by the time of testing. She and her husband were the linkages to the Grace Assembly of God, which the authorities thought was a fifth cluster of infections.

Grace Assembly of God church: 23 cases

Two Singaporean men, aged 34 and 46, who worked for the church at both its Tanglin and Bukit Batok branches tested positive for the virus on 11 February, the first two cases to emerge from the church.

The 34-year-old man was in Malaysia on 26 January. He first had symptoms on 1 February, and went to four different clinics on 2 February, 4 February, 7 February, 9 February and 10 February.

Meanwhile, the 46-year-old man first had symptoms on 3 February and went to a general practitioner clinic on 8 February before going to the emergency department at the National University Hospital (NUH) the same day.

He was discharged from the hospital the same day before being admitted again to the NUH on 10 February.

Subsequently, 21 other cases linked to the cluster, including five workers at the church as well as a National University of Singapore professor, a Public Utilities Board employee and a Singapore Armed Forces regular serviceman, tested positive between 12 and 21 February.

Wizlearn Technologies: 14 cases

The cluster was announced on 28 February. The first case in the cluster is a 38-year-old man who tested positive on 26 February. He is linked to seven other cases including a 20-year-old Malaysian man, a 25-year-old maid from Myanmar and two maids from the Philippines aged 34 and 41.

Also in the cluster is a 44-year-old man who first had symptoms on 22 February and saw two GPs on 25 February and 26 February. He was referred to NCID on 26 February and tested positive the next day.

Before he was hospitalised, the man attended business meetings at Sport Singapore in Stadium Drive, Singapore Aviation Academy and Toa Payoh Hub, and also visited the Toa Payoh Sport Centre.

A 54-year-old Japanese man is also part of the cluster. He first had symptoms on 23 February and went to a GP clinic on 24 February, 26 February and 28 February. He went to CGH on 29 February and was isolated. He tested positive on 1 March.

Prior to hospital admission, he had gone to work at WinTech Nano-Technology Services, which is located on the same floor as Wizlearn Technologies.

The latest case linked to the company was announced on Tuesday. He is a 33-year-old male Singapore citizen who is currently warded in an isolation room at the NCID.

The authorities have noted that nine of the cases were staff members, and three of them had continued with daily activities despite feeling unwell.

One even spread the virus to a family contact, who also carried on with daily activities while presenting symptoms.

15 Feb SAFRA Jurong dinner function: 43 cases

With 43 cases linked to it, the SAFA Jurong cluster is the biggest of its kind here to date. It was first identified by authorities on 5 March and the first case linked to it is a 64-year-old Singaporean woman who tested positive on 26 February.

The woman had reported developing symptoms on 11 February, four days before the function, and had sought treatment at a general practitioner clinic on three occasions thereafter.

She is a family member of a first-year Raffles Institution student who is also linked to the cluster. The 12-year-old boy tested positive for the virus on 27 February.

The youngest patient linked to this cluster is a five-year-boy who tested positive on 9 March. He reported developing symptoms two days prior. The Orange Tree Preschool@Choa Chu Kang student is a family member of case 145, a 67-year-old Singaporean woman also linked to the SAFRA Jurong cluster.

Case 142, a 26-year-old Singaporean man, is linked to this cluster and another at rock climbing gym Boulder+.

The man had reported developing symptoms on 5 March and went to the Ng Teng Fong General Hospital the next day. The Jurong West Street 81 resident tested positive for the virus on 7 March.

He is a family member of cases 139 and 140, a 71-year-old Singaporean man and a 62-year-old Singaporean woman, respectively, who are linked to this cluster.

At least one case attended the dinner function despite already feeling unwell and subsequently tested positive for the virus, said authorities.

This had potentially resulted in at least 18 additional cases who were at the dinner and later tested positive for the virus. Of these, most continued with their daily activities despite feeling unwell, resulting in additional positive cases who had not been at the dinner.

Boulder+ at Aperia Mall: 3 cases

The MOH confirmed and identified three cases – no. 142, 162 and 163 – that are linked to Boulder+ on 11 March.

Apart from case 142, who is also linked to the SAFRA Jurong cluster, case 162 is a 28-year-old Singaporean man who had been in Indonesia from 29 February to 2 March.

He reported developing symptoms on 7 March and tested positive for the virus two days later.

Prior to his hospital admission, the Kim Tian Road resident had visited a shop at 26 Jalan Membina.

Case 163 is a 27-year-old Singaporean woman who visited Funan Mall as well as the PUB Recreation Club at 48 Woodleigh Park prior to her admission into hospital.

The Redhill Road resident reported developing symptoms on Sunday. She was referred by the ministry to the NCID the next day and tested positive for the virus in the afternoon.

Another climbing facility, Climb Central, had also announced that a climber who had visited its Funan Mall outlet on Sunday had been confirmed as a COVID-19 case. It is unclear whether the case is among the three cases at Boulder+.

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