SINGAPORE - A dormitory at 35 Kian Teck Way has emerged as a new cluster of Covid-19 infections, the Ministry of Health (MOH) said on Saturday (Aug 8).
The cluster is linked to 18 newly confirmed cases and seven earlier cases, said MOH, which also confirmed 132 new coronavirus cases on Saturday.
Of the new cases, there was a community case: a 60-year-old Singaporean woman who is a close contact of an earlier case and was tested for the virus while under quarantine.
There were also six imported cases. This group comprised of three work pass or permit holders, and three Dependant's Pass holders, who arrived in Singapore from India, Indonesia and the United States between July 26 and July 27.
All six were asymptomatic, but tested for the virus while serving their stay home notices at the designated facilities.
Migrant workers residing in dormitories made up the rest of the 125 cases.
All workers in dormitories have been tested, with the exception of those living in a few standalone blocks in dorms that act as quarantine facilities, the ministry said.
"The workers in these quarantine facilities will be tested when their isolation ends, and we expect the case counts to remain high in the coming days, before tapering down thereafter," said MOH.
The ministry also said the number of new cases in the community has decreased, from an average of three cases per day in the week before, to an average of two per day in the past week.
The number of unlinked cases in the community has remained stable at an average of one case per day in the past 14 days.
Another 271 cases have been discharged, which means a total of 48,568 patients have fully recovered from the disease.
There are 145 Covid-19 patients in hospital here, and 6,174 patients are recuperating in community facilities here. Most are improving and in a stable condition, and none are in the intensive care unit, said MOH.
To date, the death toll from Covid-19 in Singapore stands at 27. Another 15 people who have tested positive have died from other causes.
The virus has infected over 19.3 million people worldwide, and claimed the lives of more than 719,000.
