62-year-old woman among three COVID-19 deaths; 1,173 new local cases reported in Singapore

SINGAPORE: Singapore reported 1,173 new local COVID-19 infections as of noon on Tuesday (Sep 21), comprising 1,038 community cases and 135 dormitory residents.

There were also three fatalities, bringing Singapore's death toll to 65.

One - a 74-year-old man - died on Sunday. He was admitted to Tan Tock Seng Hospital on Aug 31 for an unrelated medical condition and tested negative for COVID-19 upon admission.

However, another test taken on Sep 9 came back positive. The man, who was partially vaccinated, had a history of chronic kidney disease, diabetes mellitus, hypertension and hyperlipidaemia.

The other two - a 62-year-old woman and an 83-year-old man - died on Monday, said the Ministry of Health (MOH).

The woman, who was unvaccinated, tested positive for COVID-19 on Jul 23 and was admitted to Khoo Teck Puat Hospital the next day. She had a history of hypertension and hyperlipidaemia.

The man was taken to Ng Teng Fong General Hospital on Sep 15 with symptoms, and tested positive for COVID-19 on the same day.

He had been vaccinated against COVID-19, and had a history of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, recurrent aspiration pneumonia, hypertension and hyperlipidaemia which, "together with his advanced age, made him more susceptible to severe illness", MOH said. 

The case tally includes 311 seniors above the age of 60, said MOH in a daily update released to the media about 11.45pm. 

There were also five imported cases, taking the total number of new cases to 1,178.

CASES OF SERIOUS ILLNESS

There were 1,109 patients warded in hospital, most of whom were well and under observation, said MOH.

Of these, 147 cases of serious illness required oxygen supplementation, and 17 were in critical condition in the intensive care unit (ICU).

Among those who fell very ill were 135 seniors above the age of 60.

Over the last 28 days, 97.9 per cent of the local cases were asymptomatic or had mild symptoms.

There were 246 cases who needed oxygen supplementation and 23 had been in the ICU. Of these, 54.3 per cent were fully vaccinated and 45.7 per cent were either partially vaccinated or unvaccinated.

LARGE CLUSTERS

LearnJoy Education Centre has been added to a list of nine large clusters currently being monitored by MOH. The cluster has a total of 10 cases, comprising one staff member and nine students.

A cluster at My Little Campus in Yishun has expanded after five new infections were linked to it. The 24 infections in that cluster comprise two staff members, 20 students and two household members of the cases. 

The existing cluster at Pfizer Asia Pacific has grown to 37 cases after five new infections were added on Tuesday. 

Another 10 new cases were added to the cluster at Blue Stars Dormitory, taking the total number of infections there to 133. 

VACCINATIONS

MOH said 82 per cent of Singapore's population has completed their full vaccination regimen or received two doses of COVID-19 vaccines, while 84 per cent has received at least one dose as of Monday.

More than 8.97 million doses have been administered under the national vaccination programme, covering about 4.57 million people, with 4.45 million having completed the full regimen of two doses.

Another 184,864 doses of other vaccines recognised in the World Health Organization's emergency use listing have been administered, covering 87,125 people.

As of Tuesday, Singapore has reported a total of 79,899 COVID-19 cases and 65 deaths from the disease.

MORE THAN 100,000 DOSES OF SINOVAC’S VACCINE ARRIVE IN SINGAPORE

Singapore received a new shipment of 101,000 doses of Sinovac's COVID-19 vaccine on Monday. 

Health Minister Ong Ye Kung said the vaccines would benefit those who were allergic to the mRNA vaccines, such as those administered under Singapore’s national vaccination programme. 

In a Facebook post, he said that 2 per cent of Singapore's population has taken at least one dose of the Sinovac vaccine, which is administered by MOH as well as approved private clinics.

The orders were from private healthcare institutions and MOH helped in facilitating the shipment of these orders under the special access route, he added.  

The minister also said that this new stock of vaccines will be available at some of the clinics in a few days.