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COVID-19: Singapore reports 932 new cases, 7 new clusters, total at 17,101

SINGAPORE - APRIL 29:  Healthcare workers wearing the personal protective equipment attend to a foreign worker at a dormitory on April 29, 2020 in Singapore. Singapore is now battling to control a huge outbreak in the coronavirus (COVID-19) local transmission cases among the migrant workers. (Photo by Suhaimi Abdullah/Getty Images)
Healthcare workers attend to a foreign worker at a dormitory in Singapore on 29 April. (PHOTO: Getty Images)

SINGAPORE — The Ministry of Health (MOH) confirmed 932 new COVID-19 cases in Singapore as of Friday (1 May), bringing the total to 17,101.

A 60-year-old Singaporean man died on the same day from COVID-19 complications, bringing the death toll in Singapore from the coronavirus to 16.

The ministry also identified seven additional clusters, including a new cluster at Tuas South incineration plant (98 Tuas South Avenue 3) with eight cases.

The other clusters are at Joo Koon Lodge (68 Joo Koon Circle) with 10 cases, 19 Kian Teck Road with eight cases, 12 Tuas Place with eight cases, 15 Tuas View Square with 72 cases, 20 Sungei Kadut Avenue with 15 cases, and 148 Woodlands Industrial Park E5 with 21 cases.

Of the 932 new cases, 905, or over 97 per cent, are foreign workers living in dorms.

The remainder are 16 foreign workers living outside dorms, and 11 in the community comprising five Singaporeans/permanent residents and six work pass holders.

(TABLES: New and cumulative COVID-19 cases in Singapore as of 1 May 2020/Ministry of Health)
(TABLES: New and cumulative COVID-19 cases in Singapore as of 1 May 2020/Ministry of Health)

The number of new cases in the community has fallen from an average of 25 cases per day in the week before to an average of 12 per day in the past week.

The number of unlinked cases in the community has also fallen from an average of 16 cases per day in the week before to an average of six per day in the past week.

The number of new cases among work permit holders residing outside dormitories has dropped from an average of 27 cases per day in the week before to an average of 14 per day in the past week.

Of the new cases, 30 per cent are unlinked and pending contact tracing.

Two cases: NUH housekeepers

Two Malaysian men who are employed as housekeepers at National University Hospital (NUH) were confirmed to have COVID-19 infection on 28 April.

One of them (case 15259), 28, who is warded at NUH, had gone to work prior to hospital admission.

The other man (case 15700), 24, who is warded at Singapore General Hospital, had not gone to work since onset of symptoms.

Discharged cases

Another 24 confirmed cases have been discharged, bringing the total of fully recovered patients to 1,268.

There are currently 1,764 confirmed cases who are still in hospital, most of whom are stable or improving. As of Friday, 23 are in the intensive care unit.

A total of 14,053 with mild symptoms but still have the infection are isolated and cared for at community facilities.

More than 50 clusters linked to foreign worker dormitories have been identified thus far, including Singapore’s largest cluster linked to S11 Dormitory@Punggol, followed by Tuas View Dormitory and Sungei Tengah Lodge.

The three are among the 25 dorms that have been gazetted as isolation areas. Some 300,000 foreign workers live in dorms here in Singapore.

As of 27 April, the ministry has conducted 143,919 swab tests, of which 99,929 were done on unique individuals.

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