Big queues at popular stalls likely caused Bukit Merah outbreak

The use of common facilities at the centre and long queues at popular stalls could be possible reasons for the Covid-19 outbreak at the Bukit Merah View Market and Food Centre, said Singapore's director of medical services Kenneth Mak.

"Some of the cases we have interviewed have reported queuing up for at least 30 minutes, which would ordinarily be considered a significant period of close contact," he said.

Associate Professor Mak added that the specific causes of the outbreak have yet to be pinned down.

Prof Mak was speaking during a virtual media conference by the multi-ministry task force on Covid-19 yesterday to give an update about Singapore's next phase of reopening.

He said that as at Thursday, there were 56 cases in the Bukit Merah View cluster. This rose to 65 cases as at yesterday.

Of these, 21 of the cases are staff or vendors, and 13 are visitors to the market or food centre. The remaining cases are people who were likely infected with the virus by those who had visited the centre, said Prof Mak.

"It is still not possible for us to pin down specific modes of transmission," he said. "But it is very likely that amongst tenants, stallholders and staff working at both the market and the food centre, close contact among them would have contributed to exposure and spread."

The spread of the coronavirus could also have occurred through the use of common facilities, including the toilets, he added.

Several precautions have since been taken in the light of the growing number of cases around the area, he noted.

For instance, mandatory swab operations have been carried out for staff and vendors, and voluntary testing has been offered to market visitors.

Prof Mak said the Health Ministry is also studying other Covid-19 clusters that have emerged near the Bukit Merah View market, and is looking to see whether there are any links that can be established between them.

MOH is conducting investigations into the cases to trace their origins and will report the results when they become available.

Prof Mak encouraged those who have yet to be vaccinated to register for it and get vaccinated.

Citing the Bukit Merah View cluster, he said 32 per cent of cases had been vaccinated, but 50 per cent have yet to receive the vaccine. The rest have either received just one dose or have not yet derived the full protection afforded by the vaccination's two doses.

"This does support the view that vaccination does protect you and reduce the risk of you getting infected," he said.

In response to a question about why the authorities will allow dining in for groups of two at hawker centres from Monday despite the Bukit Merah View market cases, Trade and Industry Minister Gan Kim Yong said the risk of transmission is not specific to hawker centres.

Instead, it is related to the nature of the activity, which involves people having to take off their masks while they eat, said Mr Gan, who co-chairs the Covid-19 task force.

He also noted that a portion of the cases in the Bukit Merah View cluster were actually staff in retail shops selling non-food items.

"So, the rules that we have put in place is a more cautious approach, a calibrated approach, taking into account the higher risk nature of the activity that we see in the eating places," he said.

On the question of the risks of Covid-19 transmission brought about by queues, Prof Mak said the risk could be multiplied if people are queueing for a prolonged period without safe distancing.

"Consider coming back another day or going somewhere else which is less crowded, mitigate the risk for yourself to avoid putting yourself in such a situation," he added.