513 new Covid-19 cases in Singapore, including 2 in the community and 6 imported

A man going through a swab test for the coronavirus at a regional screening centre in Bukit Gombak on June 9, 2020. ST PHOTO: NG SOR LUAN

SINGAPORE - There were 513 new coronavirus cases confirmed as of Saturday noon (July 25), taking Singapore's total to 49,888.

They included two community cases, both of whom are work pass holders, said the Ministry of Health (MOH).

There were also six imported cases who had been placed on stay-home notices upon arrival in Singapore.

Migrant workers living in dormitories made up the vast majority of the other cases.

More details will be announced on Saturday night.

On Friday, one of the three Covid-19 community cases announced by MOH was linked to three previous cases, forming a new cluster at Bukit Panjang Integrated Transport Hub.

He is a 28-year-old work permit holder who went to work at Ulu Pandan Bus Depot and the transport hub.

The Malaysian national was confirmed to have the virus on Thursday after showing symptoms on July 1.

He was detected as part of the ministry's proactive case finding of individuals working at a newly emergent workplace cluster.

In total, there were 277 new coronavirus cases confirmed on Friday.

They included the three community cases, all of whom are work permit holders, said MOH.

There were also two imported coronavirus cases.

Both were dependant's pass holders and were placed on stay-home notices upon arrival in Singapore from India on July 12. They were tested while serving their notices.

Migrant workers in dormitories made up the 272 remaining cases.

The average number of new daily cases in the community in a week has decreased from 11 cases two weeks ago to eight in the past week.

The number of new unlinked cases in the community in a week has decreased from a daily average of six cases to four over the same period.

MOH also added several new locations to a list of places visited by Covid-19 patients while they were still infectious, including Hillion Mall in Bukit Panjang, which is integrated with the Bukit Panjang Integrated Transport Hub linked to Friday's new cluster.

Hillion Mall's My Briyani House eatery was also on Friday's list, together with Jem mall's Robinsons outlet, and the Gandhi Restaurant in Chander Road in Little India.

The ministry provides the list of locations and times that infectious Covid-19 patients visited for at least 30 minutes to get those who were at these places at specific periods to monitor their health closely for two weeks from the date of their visit.

MOH has said that close contacts would already have been notified and there is no need to avoid these places as they would have been cleaned, if needed.

With 157 cases discharged on Friday, 45,157 patients have fully recovered from the disease.

A total of 157 patients remain in hospital, while 4,019 are recuperating in community facilities. None is in intensive care.

Singapore has had 27 deaths from Covid-19 complications, while 15 who tested positive have died of other causes.

Globally, the virus outbreak, which began in December last year, has infected more than 15.9 million people. More than 641,000 people have died.

Join ST's WhatsApp Channel and get the latest news and must-reads.