COVID-19: S'pore crosses 10,000 mark with 1,016 more cases; confirms 12th fatality and 8 clusters
SINGAPORE — The Ministry of Health (MOH) announced on Wednesday (22 April) 1,016 new COVID-19 cases and Singapore’s 12th fatality from the virus, bringing the total here to 10,141 – the highest recorded in Southeast Asia.
An 84-year-old Singaporean woman had succumbed to complications due to COVID-19 on Tuesday night.
Of the 1,016 new cases, 967 – or about 95% – are foreign workers living in dormitories.
Due to extensive testing, many more cases are being picked up in dorms, the MOH said. “Most of these cases have a mild illness and are being monitored in the community isolation facilities or general ward of our hospitals. None of them are in the intensive care unit,” it added.
UPDATE: Breakdown of the 1,016 cases today https://t.co/Cf9pepuisD pic.twitter.com/mAkujtT5GM
— Yahoo Singapore (@YahooSG) April 22, 2020
Of the remaining cases, 32 are foreign workers residing outside dorms while 17 are cases in the community, including 15 Singaporeans and permanent residents.
Overall, 27 per cent have no established links.
The MOH noted that the number of new cases in the community has decreased, from an average of 36 cases per day in the week before, to an average of 25 per day in the past week.
“The number of unlinked cases in the community has decreased, from an average of 21 cases per day in the week before, to an average of 17 per day in the past week,” it added.
“We will continue to closely monitor these numbers, as well as the cases detected through our surveillance programme.”
Separately, the number of new cases amongst foreign workers residing outside dorms has continued to increase, from an average of 14 cases per day in the week before, to an average of 30 per day in the past week, said the MOH.
The ministry also announced eight new clusters that are linked to Wing Fong Court condominium at 10 Lorong 14 Geylang, 10 Kranji Link, 61 Senoko Drive, 8 and 18 Sungei Kadut Avenue as well as 32, 36 and 40 Tuas View Square.
Around 40 clusters linked to foreign worker dorms have been identified thus far, including Singapore’s largest cluster of 2,211 cases linked to S11 Dormitory@Punggol, followed by Sungei Tengah Lodge linked to 684 cases.
Both are among the 18 dorms that have been gazetted as isolation areas. Cases linked to the two places of residence account for over 35 per cent of the total 8,094 infected cases living in dorms.
Some 300,000 foreign workers live in dorms here in Singapore.
(For more details on the breakdown of the clusters, read here.)
Nursing home healthcare assistant, resident among recent cases
The Agency for Integrated Care (AIC) separately confirmed that there are two cases in nursing homes, identified as no. 8407 and 10,127, announced by the ministry on Tuesday and Wednesday.
The earlier case is a 40-year-old healthcare assistant at Sunshine Welfare Action Mission (SWAMI) Home at 5 Sembawang Walk, said AIC.
The woman tested positive for the virus on Monday and is currently warded in an isolation room at the Khoo Teck Puat Hospital. She was last at work on 19 April.
The other case is an 86-year-old resident at nursing home operator Kwong Wai Shiu Hospital (KWSH) at 705 Serangoon Road.
The woman tested positive for the virus on Tuesday and is currently warded in an isolation room at the Tan Tock Seng Hospital.
The AIC said that both the SWAMI Home and KWSH have taken additional precautionary measures in consultation with the MOH and the agency.
“This includes a thorough cleaning and disinfection of the ward and affected areas of both homes. Contact tracing is ongoing and those who had close contact with the confirmed cases will be quarantined,” it added.
“The MOH and the AIC stand ready to assist SWAMI Home and KWSH with additional support during this period if required, to ensure service continuity for their residents.”
57 more cases discharged, 25 in ICU
The MOH on Wednesday also said that 57 more cases have been discharged from hospitals or community isolation facilities.
In all, 896 patients have fully recovered and have been discharged, while 25 are in critical condition in the intensive care unit, down from 27 on Tuesday.
To date, 12 cases here have died from complications due to COVID-19 infection.
Three patients, who tested positive for the virus, have died from causes unrelated to COVID-19. The latest such fatality was a 40-year-old Malaysian man who died of a heart attack on Saturday. He had tested positive for the virus the day before.
As of 14 April, the ministry has conducted 94,796 swab tests, of which 59,737 were done on unique individuals.
Circuit breaker period extended, more shops to suspend operations
On Tuesday, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong announced that the end of the circuit breaker period will be extended by four weeks to 1 June, from 4 May as previously planned.
Tighter measures will also be in place during this extension, including entry to certain wet markets on alternate dates based on one’s identification number. Less critical businesses, such as bubble tea shops and those predominantly selling pastries or cakes, will be closed from 11.59pm on Tuesday until at least 4 May.
Authorities have previously progressively closed other venues during the circuit breaker period, including stadiums, beaches, facilities in parks and gardens and playfields.
Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Heng Swee Keat also on Tuesday announced that the Solidarity Budget will be boosted by a further $3.8 billion, bringing the government’s total financial assistance during the COVID-19 pandemic to more than $63 billion.
The COVID-19 Temporary Measures Act, passed in Parliament on 7 April, gives authorities the power to ban events and gatherings, or impose conditions on how they are conducted, during the circuit breaker period.
Those caught flouting the enhanced safe distancing measures, including compulsory mask-wearing, for the first time will be given a composition fine of $300, and a $1,000 fine for the second time.
Egregious cases will be prosecuted in court. A first-time offender who is prosecuted under the Act can face a maximum fine of $10,000, or a jail term of up to six months, or both. A second-time or subsequent offender can face a maximum fine of $20,000, or a jail term of up to a year, or both.
Separately, all Singapore residents and long-term pass holders returning from overseas apart from Hubei province must serve the 14-day stay-home notice, while those returning from Hubei must serve a 14-day quarantine.
All short-term visitors are barred from entering or transiting via Singapore.
Almost 2.6m cases globally
To date, there are close to 2.6 million COVID-19 cases globally – it took 83 days to reach the first million cases worldwide and just 14 days for the second million.
More than 180,000 have died from the virus, with the US holding the record for the highest global death toll at almost 46,000.
At more than 820,000 cases, the country also holds the record of having the largest number of patients globally, followed by Spain at over 208,000 cases, Italy at over 183,000, and France with over 158,000 cases.
China, where the virus originated, has reported over 82,000 cases and more than 4,600 deaths, after it abruptly readjusted its death toll higher by 50 per cent last Friday.
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