2 new COVID-19 clusters including Redhill Close; 15 new community cases in Singapore
People are seen a COVID-19 testing centre at the pavilion at 84A Redhill Close on Jun 21, 2021. (Photo: Try Sutrisno Foo)
SINGAPORE: Singapore reported 15 new COVID-19 cases in the community as of noon on Tuesday (Jun 22), including five with no links to previous cases.
Of the 10 linked to previous cases, three were already in quarantine and seven were detected through surveillance testing, said the Ministry of Health (MOH).
Two new clusters were identified - one involving cases linked to 90 Redhill Close and one involving cases linked to Case 64233, a 41-year-old foreign domestic worker.
NEW CLUSTER AT 90 REDHILL CLOSE
One unlinked community case and two linked community cases formed a new cluster at 90 Redhill Close. This followed a mandatory testing exercise for residents of seven housing blocks in Redhill, including 90 Redhill Close.
The unlinked case, identified as Case 64379, was a 79-year-old Singaporean retiree. He developed a fever and cough on Jun 21 but did not seek medical attention.
The man's infection was detected on Jun 21 as part of community surveillance testing for residents of the Redhill Close area. His serology test result was negative.
One of the linked community cases was his family member - a 69-year-old Singaporean retiree.
She developed a sore throat, nausea and vomiting on Jun 21 and sought treatment at Singapore General Hospital on the same day.
The woman was tested for COVID-19 then, with her result coming back positive the same day. Her serology test result was negative.
The other new case was a close contact of Case 64379 - an unemployed 50-year-old Singaporean woman. Her infection was detected as part of community surveillance testing for residents of the Redhill Close area on Jun 21.
The woman developed a fever and her test result came back positive on the same day. Her serology test result was pending.
NEW CLUSTER INVOLVING FOREIGN DOMESTIC WORKER
Another new cluster was identified involving Case 64233, a Filipino foreign domestic worker who tested positive for COVID-19 on Jun 14.
The worker, who had been taken to a regional screening centre by her employer after developing COVID-19 symptoms, should have consulted a doctor first, said MOH last week when her infection was reported.
READ: Maid who was tested for COVID-19 at a regional screening centre should have been taken to doctor first: MOH
One new community case was linked to this cluster on Tuesday - a 52-year-old consultant at Syndicate Road, a management consultancy. Identified as Case 64375, he had been fully vaccinated and had been working from home since May 1, said MOH.
The man, a permanent resident, was a household contact of Case 64233. He was also a family member of an earlier case involving a 12-year-old student at Tanglin Trust School, whose infection was confirmed on Jun 16.
He was placed on quarantine on Jun 15, and his results for tests taken on Jun 15 and Jun 18 came back negative for COVID-19.
He subsequently developed a fever and runny nose on Jun 20 and was tested again the next day, his result coming back positive then.
His serology test result was negative for the N antigen, suggesting the presence of early infection, said MOH.
UNLINKED CASES
A 26-year-old analyst at Deutsche Bank was among the five unlinked cases reported on Tuesday. She developed symptoms on Jun 15 and Jun 17 and went to a doctor on Jun 17 but declined to be tested for COVID-19.
After a household contact, Case 64373, tested positive on Jun 21, the Deutsche Bank employee visited a clinic on the same day and was tested. Both her antigen rapid test (ART) and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test came back positive.
Two retirees and a 36-year-old driver at Omni Aquatic Supplies were the other unlinked cases reported on Tuesday.
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115 BUKIT MERAH VIEW CLUSTER GROWS
Three more cases were linked to 115 Bukit Merah View Market and Food Centre, bringing the cluster size to 81.
One new case was an 11-year-old student at Convent of the Holy Infant Jesus (Kellock). She was a family member of an earlier case and placed on quarantine.
The girl developed symptoms on Jun 21 and tested positive on the same day.
The other two cases involved a 32-year-old man who is unemployed, and a 43-year-old man working as a stall assistant at the food centre.
Both infections were detected as part of community surveillance testing for residents, workers and visitors of the Bukit Merah View area.
READ: 2 new COVID-19 clusters at Bukit Merah View; FairPrice staff at Bukit Merah Central outlet to be tested
OTHER BUKIT MERAH VIEW CLUSTERS GROW
A 74-year-old man employed by Theng Liang Lee Services as a part-time cleaner at 104 Henderson Crescent was linked to the 119 Bukit Merah View Cluster. He was fully vaccinated.
The man developed a runny nose on Jun 20 but did not seek medical attention. His infection was detected as part of community surveillance testing for residents of the Bukit Merah View area on Jun 21.
Another case was linked to the 121 Bukit Merah View cluster - a 62 year-old part-time cook at Marine Parade Central Market and Food Centre who was last at work on Jun 6.
The woman was identified as a close contact of another case in the cluster and placed on quarantine on Jun 19, during which she tested positive.
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OTHER LINKED CASES
Two other linked community cases were reported on Tuesday - a 24-year-old analyst at Axis Specialty and a 23-year-old student at Singapore Institute of Management.
Both infections were detected through surveillance testing.
LOCATIONS VISITED BY COMMUNITY CASES
Several locations in Redhill, Bukit Merah and Tiong Bahru were added to a list of public places visited by COVID-19 cases while infectious.
These include Redhill Market, NTUC FairPrice at 166 Bukit Merah Central and Tiong Bahru Plaza.
Shopping malls such as VivoCity, Funan and Sim Lim Square were also added to the list.
The full list of new places:
IMPORTED CASES
There were also three imported cases, all of which had been placed on stay-home notice or isolated upon their arrival in Singapore.
One was a Singaporean and another was a permanent resident returning from India.
The third imported case was a special pass holder who was a sea crew member. He arrived from Brazil on a vessel and had remained onboard until he was taken to a hospital.
No new infections were reported in migrant workers' dormitories.
In all, Singapore reported 18 new COVID-19 cases on Tuesday.
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TWO IN CRITICAL CONDITION
Twenty-eight more cases of COVID-19 infection have been discharged, bringing the total number of recoveries to 62,098.
There were 142 still in hospital, with two in critical condition in the intensive care unit.
A total of 173 were isolated and cared for at community facilities.
Overall, the number of new cases in the community increased from 60 cases in the week before to 104 cases in the past week.
The number of unlinked cases in the community also increased from 17 cases in the week before to 21 cases in the past week.
Among the 133 confirmed cases reported from Jun 16 to Jun 22, 45 cases tested positive for their serology tests, 78 tested negative and 10 serology test results were pending.
TESTING FOR BUKIT MERAH CENTRAL FAIRPRICE OUTLET
The health ministry said on Monday it was investigating cases of COVID-19 among people who visited the NTUC FairPrice branch at 166 Bukit Merah Central.
The supermarket's staff will undergo COVID-19 tests in order to disrupt any "wider, undetected community transmission", said MOH. Free COVID-19 tests will also be offered to people who visited the supermarket between Jun 3 and 21.
As of Tuesday, Singapore has reported a total of 62,448 COVID-19 cases and 35 fatalities from the disease.
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