COVID-19: Singapore reports 3,163 cases, 13 more deaths

SINGAPORE — The Ministry of Health (MOH) on Sunday (31 October) confirmed 3,163 new COVID-19 cases in Singapore – bringing the country's total case count to 198,374 – as well as 13 deaths due to the disease.

This comes four days after the ministry reported a single-day high of 5,324 cases, in what it described as an "unusual surge" within a relatively short window.

It also marks the 42nd day in a row with fatalities from COVID-19 reported in Singapore, with 306 people having succumbed to it this month.

The dead were aged between 57 and 89 years old. All of them had various underlying medical conditions, the MOH said, except for two unvaccinated/ partially vaccinated individuals who had no known medical conditions.

Among the cases on Sunday, there were 2,745 community cases, 414 dormitory resident cases and four imported cases. Among the community cases were 531 seniors aged 60 and above. The ratio of community cases for the past week over the week before is 1.12, the ministry said.

Four active COVID-19 clusters are being closely monitored in Singapore, including those at a preschool and the Institute of Mental Health (IMH).

There are 20 cases at PCF Sparkletots @ Whampoa Block 85, and 266 cases – comprising 16 staff and 250 patients – at the IMH.

284 require oxygen supplementation; 130 in ICU

A total of 3,759 cases were discharged on Sunday, of whom 528 are patients aged 60 and above, said the MOH.

Currently, 1,672 cases are warded in hospital. Over the last 28 days, of the 94,369 infected individuals, 98.7 per cent had no or mild symptoms.

There are currently 284 cases of serious illness requiring oxygen supplementation. A total of 130 cases are in the intensive care unit (ICU) – 69 are unstable and under close monitoring to prevent further deterioration, while 61 are critically ill and intubated.

The current overall ICU utilisation rate is 68.3 per cent, said the MOH. On Tuesday, the ministry had said that it has triggered the next 100 ICU beds, which will be ready next week.

Vaccination progress

The MOH noted that over the past seven days, the number of fully vaccinated and non-fully vaccinated cases who are critically ill in the ICU are at 0.5 and 4.5 per 100,000 population respectively.

Over the same period, the number of fully vaccinated and non-fully vaccinated cases who died are 0.1 and 0.9 per 100,000 population respectively, it added.

Among those aged 60 and above, the number of fully vaccinated and non-fully vaccinated cases who are critically ill in the ICU are 2.0 and 35.8 respectively. The number of fully vaccinated and non-fully vaccinated seniors who died are 0.4 and 8.7, respectively, said the MOH.

Apart from the 407 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.

As of Saturday, 84 per cent of the population have completed their full regimen or received two doses of COVID-19 vaccines, 85 per cent have received at least one dose and 15 per cent have received their booster shots.

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