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COVID-19: Singapore confirms 81 new cases; 10 imported cases from a vessel which arrived on 8 Aug

Cyclists ride along Marina Bay overlooking the financial business district in Singapore on July 14, 2020. - Singapore plunged into recession in the second quarter as the economy contracted more than 40 percent, preliminary data showed on July 14, with the trade-dependent city state hammered by the coronavirus in another ominous sign for the global recovery. (Photo by Roslan RAHMAN / AFP) (Photo by ROSLAN RAHMAN/AFP via Getty Images)
Cyclists ride along Marina Bay overlooking the financial business district in Singapore. (PHOTO: Roslan Rahman/AFP via Getty Images)

SINGAPORE — The Ministry of Health (MOH) has confirmed 81 new COVID-19 cases in Singapore as of Saturday (15 August) noon, taking the country’s total case count to 55,661.

Of these, there are three community cases and 16 imported cases, with the remaining mostly being cases of work permit holders currently under quarantine. The breakdown is as follows:

  • Imported cases: 16 (2 work pass holders, 1 work permit holder, 3 dependant’s pass holders, 10 special pass holders)

  • Cases in the community: 3 (2 Singaporeans, 1 work pass holder)

  • Cases residing in dormitories: 62

Imported cases

Of the 16 imported cases, 10 are from a vessel which arrived in Singapore from India on 8 August. As they had been identified as close contacts of previous cases, they were swabbed while on the vessel even though five of them are asymptomatic. They remained on the vessel until their test results came back positive for COVID-19, and were subsequently conveyed in ambulances to a hospital.

Three imported cases are aged between one and three years old. They are dependant’s pass holders who arrived from India on 31 July and South Africa on 29 July.

Another three are work pass/work permit holders who are currently employed in Singapore. They arrived from Bangladesh on 1 August and the Philippines on 2 August. All of them had been placed on 14-day Stay-Home Notice (SHN) upon arrival, and were serving their SHN at dedicated facilities. They were tested while serving their SHN.

Community cases

All three cases in the community had been identified as contacts of previously confirmed cases. Two of them had been placed on quarantine earlier, and were tested during quarantine to determine their status.

Case 55731 is a technician who boarded the affected vessel between 8 and 12 August to carry out essential repair and maintenance work. He was subsequently placed on quarantine when some crew members were infected, and swabbed even though he is asymptomatic.

Case 55712 was detected under enhanced community testing to test all individuals aged 13 and above who are diagnosed with acute respiratory infection (ARI) at first presentation to a doctor.

Overall, the number of new cases in the community has remained stable at an average of two cases per day in the past two weeks, said MOH. The number of unlinked cases in the community has also remained stable at an average of one case per day in the past two weeks.

Jewel Music Box KTV

Epidemiological investigations also found that three cases (55169, 55469 and 55712) visited Jewel Music Box KTV at HomeTeamNS Khatib on 1 August and 2 August. Two of them were at the KTV for long periods for work purposes.

Visitors were invited to preview the new KTV premise on the two dates, and most stayed for a short period of time. The KTV was not operational during the visits and there were no singing activities held. Therefore the risk of infection for visitors is assessed to be low.

However, as a precautionary measure, MOH will be contacting all visitors to the KTV on the two dates and facilitating COVID-19 testing for them.

All visitors to the Jewel Music Box KTV at HomeTeamNS Khatib during the affected dates are advised to monitor their health and seek medical attention promptly should they develop acute respiratory infection symptoms. They may call MOH at 1800- 333-9999 if they have queries.

Cases in the dorms

The Inter-agency Taskforce has completed the testing of all workers in the dormitories. There are currently about 20,700 workers who are still serving out their quarantine period.

“These workers will be tested when their quarantine ends, and we expect the case counts to remain high in the coming days, before tapering down thereafter,” said MOH.

Over 51,000 discharged; none in ICU

472 more cases of COVID-19 infection were discharged from hospitals or community isolation facilities on Saturday. In all, 51,521 - some 92 per cent of the total - have fully recovered from the infection and been discharged.

There are currently 83 confirmed cases who are still in hospital. Of these, most are stable or improving, and none is in the intensive care unit.

4,030 are isolated and cared for at community facilities. These patients have mild symptoms, or are clinically well but still test positive for COVID-19. 27 have passed away from complications due to COVID-19 infection.

Apart from 27 patients who have died from COVID-19 complications, 15 others who tested positive for the virus were determined to have died from unrelated causes, including three whose deaths were attributed to a heart attack and another four, whose deaths were attributed to coronary heart disease.

“Only cases where the attending doctor or pathologist attributes the primary or underlying cause of death as due to COVID-19 infection will be added to the COVID-19 death count,” said the MOH in previous press releases, adding that the method of assessment is consistent with international practices for classifying deaths.

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