2 taken to hospital after fire at Great World Serviced Apartments; COE prices mixed, slight dip for Cat A and B: Singapore live news

Thailand reported its first suspected case of a dangerous mpox strain in a European traveller.

The 66-year-old male arrived from an unnamed African country. He is believed to be infected by the Clade 1 variant, which is deadlier and more transmissible.

The head of the Department of Disease Control is awaiting lab results to confirm the strain, but has said definitively that it's not the Clade 2 variant.

Thailand previously detected 800 cases of the Clade 2 variant.

For more on this mpox case in Thailand, read here.

Sitting too long on the toilet can lead to an uncomfortable condition known as hemorrhoids.

A gastroenterologist explained that sitting on the toilet for a prolonged period of time leads to blood pooling in the blood vessels of the anus and it can cause hemorrhoids.

Hemorrhoids are swollen veins in the anus and rectum and it's a treatable condition. You should always seek medical attention when dealing with one.

To find out another potential cause, read here.

Alice Guo was supposedly in Singapore for a month after she fled the Philippines.

The former Philippine mayor is under investigation for her ties to Chinese crime syndicates and is also linked to two foreigners convicted in Singapore of money laundering.

Guo reportedly arrived in Kuala Lumpur on 18 July before flying to Singapore on 21 July. It was also reported that she was in town to visit her parents who arrived in Singapore from China on 28 July.

She then seemed to have left for Batam, Indonesia on a ferry on 18 August.

The Straits Times spoke to the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) about Guo’s trip but they only confirmed that she wasn't in the country.

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr is investigating how Guo managed to flee the country and warned that "heads will roll".

For more on Guo's trip through Singapore, read here.

She just finished the European leg of her hugely successful concert tour, but Taylor Swift is not done.

In fact, she is speaking now.

Swift addressed the foiled terrorist attack that led to the cancellation of three Eras Tour shows in Vienna on Instagram today (22 Aug).

She wrote that the cancellations were "devastating" and the reason for it filled her with "a new sense of fear". Swift had previously said a concert terror attack was her biggest fear after the ISIS bombing of an Ariana Grande concert.

"But I was also so grateful to the authorities because thanks to them, we were grieving concerts and not lives," added the pop star.

Swift also seemingly addressed the vocal online crowd that demanded for a statement and slammed her silence since the threat was unveiled.

She said, "Let me be very clear: I am not going to speak about something publicly if I think doing so might provoke those who would want to harm the fans who come to my shows.

"In cases like this one, ‘silence’ is actually showing restraint, and waiting to express yourself at a time when it’s right to."

Swift's final show for the European leg was at Wembley Stadium on (20 Aug) where she brought out Florence Welch as a surprise guest, and dropped the music video for her new single, I Can Do It With A Broken Heart.

To see her whole statement on the terror plot, read here.

Football legend Cristiano Ronaldo smashed YouTube records with the launch of his channel, UR.

He reached 100,000 subscribers within 55 minutes of its launch and surpassed the one-million mark in 90 minutes.

Ronaldo also overtook Lionel Messi's channel – with 2.16 million subscribers – in two hours, and doubled that amount four hours after his launch.

He has some videos up on his channel, including one where he referred to longtime girlfriend Georgina Rodriguez as his wife.

To know more about his successful YouTube debut, read here.

Fujikawaguchiko has reversed its decision on the Mount Fuji-blocking barrier, albeit quietly.

On August 15, the city officials removed the black net that was blocking the view of the mountain, though it's unclear if it's permanent.

The plan, initially, was to remove it due to strong winds but officials say there's no timeline on putting it back up.

The net was installed in May because that spot went viral on Instagram and TikTok and drew many tourists who didn't clean up after themselves.

City officials feel that the net has been "effective" because there are "no more people staying long in the area". However, they added that security patrols are in the area monitoring and they'll put the net back up again if status quo changes.

To know more about this Mount Fuji photo op, read here.

Certificate of entitlement (COE) prices were mixed at the end of the second bidding exercise in August 2024.

Cat A prices fell $389 to $93,900 and Cat B slipped $212 to $105,889. Cat D, reserved for motorcycles, also saw a dip of $291, closing at $9,310.

Conversely, Cat C and E saw their premiums rise.

For the full breakdown of COE prices, read here.