548 new Covid-19 cases in Singapore, tally stands at 31,616
Migrant workers at North Coast Lodge in Woodlands.
SINGAPORE — Singapore has confirmed 548 new cases of Covid-19, said the Ministry of Health (MOH) in a press release on Sunday (May 24).
This brings the total number of cases here to 31,616.
Four of the new cases were from the community, including three Singaporeans and one work permit holder.
One of the new local unlinked cases is a Singaporean woman who went to work at Iman Childcare in Tampines.
Her positive test result was picked up as a result of proactive screening of preschool staff, said MOH. This brings the total number of preschool staff here who have tested positive for Covid-19 to eight.
The Early Childhood Development Agency had earlier announced that all 30,000 staff members at preschools are required to take a one-time swab test before preschools reopen, which would be conducted between May 15 and May 26.
The number of new cases in the community has increased from an average of five per day in the week before, to an average of six per day in the past week.
"This is partly due to our active surveillance and screening of nursing home residents and preschool staff, which have picked up more cases in the past week," said MOH.
The number of unlinked cases in the community has remained stable at an average of two per day in the past two weeks.
Dormitory cases accounted for 544 of the new cases, including those in factory-converted dormitories.
MOH said this is due to "extensive testing in these premises" as part of its process to verify and test the status of all workers.
There were no new imported cases reported.
Of the new cases, 99 per cent are linked to known clusters, while the rest are pending contact tracing, said MOH.
No new clusters were reported on Sunday, and a cluster at Strand Hotel located at 25 Bencoolen Street was closed after having no new cases linked to it for the past 28 days.
In addition, 994 more patients were discharged from hospitals or community isolation facilities, said MOH, bringing the total number of discharged patients here to 14,876.
Another 690 patients are still in hospital. Of these, eight are in critical condition under intensive care while the others are stable or improving. A total of 16,027 cases are being cared for at community facilities.
To date, 23 have passed away from complications due to Covid-19.
