SINGAPORE - A 72-year-old Singaporean man, who works as an aviation screening officer at Changi Airport Terminal 1, is among the three new Covid-19 unlinked community cases reported on Saturday (Jan 30).
He developed a cough and sore throat on Monday, the day he received his first dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, but he did not seek medical treatment.
His job involves screening the baggage of arrival passengers via X-ray scanners, and directing passengers to the baggage screening lines.
On Wednesday, he went to work and was tested as part of rostered routine testing (RRT), and his test results came back positive the next day.
On Thursday, the man met with 12 others for tennis at the National Service Resort & Country Club.
The Ministry of Health (MOH) is investigating if there had been any breach of prevailing safe management measures.
In a statement on Saturday night, the MOH said: "As the vaccine does not contain live virus, he could not have been infected due to vaccination. It is possible for one to be infected just before or just after vaccination as it typically takes a few weeks for an individual to build up immunity after completing vaccination."
The second community case is a 68-year-old male Singapore permanent resident who works as a cleaner at Broadway Coffee Shop in Yishun.
He developed symptoms on Tuesday but did not seek medical treatment and went to work the next day.
He tested positive when he went to a polyclinic for medical treatment.
The man's wife, a 69-year-old woman, is the third case in the community.
Like her husband, she did not seek medical treatment even after developing symptoms last Saturday.
All the identified close contacts of the cases, including their family members and co-workers, have been isolated and placed on quarantine.
China Square Food Centre at Telok Ayer Street, Broadway coffeeshop at Block 848 Yishun Street 81, and the National Service Resort & Country Club Changi were among new places visited by Covid-19 patients in the community during their infectious period.
A total of 58 new coronavirus cases were announced by the Ministry of Health on Saturday, the highest single-day tally in Singapore since Sept 11 last year when 86 cases were reported.
Among them, 55 were imported and had already been placed on stay-home notice upon arrival in Singapore.
They include three Singaporeans and a Singapore permanent resident. Forty one are work-permit holders, including 32 foreign domestic workers, from Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Myanmar. The rest are dependent's pass holders, work pass holders, short-term visit pass holders, and a long-term visit pass holder.
With 15 cases discharged on Saturday, 59,181 patients have fully recovered from the disease. A total of 46 patients are still in hospital, with none in the intensive care unit.
The total number of Covid-19 cases here now stands at 59,507 cases. Globally, more than 100 million people have been infected with Covid-19, and more than two million deaths have been recorded.
