COVID-19 Outbreak: 313 Confirmed Cases in SG, 117 Discharged, 15 Critical (18 Mar)

[Carbon82]

Coronavirus: 9 new cases confirmed in Singapore with 6 linked to Grace Assembly church

SINGAPORE - Nine more coronavirus cases have been confirmed here, with six linked to the Grace Assembly of God church.

The church is now the biggest cluster, with 13 confirmed cases. The first two patients there tested positive on Feb 11.

Three more new cases have also surfaced, bringing the total number of those who have been infected to 67, the Ministry of Health said on Friday (Feb 14).

This includes a PUB employee, an administrative staff who works in the Environment Building.

Even as more cases are uncovered and Singapore steps up measures to contain the virus, there are no plans to further increase the current alert level, said Health Minister Gan Kim Yong at a press conference.

"I want to say categorically that we have no plans to go to Dorscon red," said Mr Gan, who co-chairs a multi-ministry task force with National Development Minister Lawrence Wong.

Singapore moved from yellow to orange on Feb 7 after the first local cases with no known link to previous cases were announced.

Dorscon (Disease Outbreak Response System Condition) orange means the disease is severe and spreads easily between people, but it has not spread widely in Singapore and is being contained.

Dorscon red is for when the disease is severe and spreading widely.

Meanwhile, two more patients have been discharged while six remain in critical care, said Associate Professor Kenneth Mak, director of medical services at MOH.

Asked if a "super spreader" has been identified within the church cluster, Prof Mak said that studies and contact tracing are being done.

"We have not identified a single individual to be a super spreader," he said.

Mr Wong noted that the current Covid-19 disease is different from the severe acute respiratory syndrome (Sars) and is, in fact, closer to H1N1 (influenza).

While less severe and less infectious than Sars, the current virus has a higher degree of infection, which is why experts have projected that it may spread at a much faster rate, he said.

He said: "If you look at H1N1 and the flu pandemic in 2009, in Singapore alone, more than 400,000 got ill from H1N1 in less that a year. We are not saying this will happen for Covid-19. It's a different disease."

But transmission patterns are similar to H1N1, so there is a need to prepare for scenarios of wider transmission around the world, he said.

Apart from the Grace Assembly of God church, the other clusters that have been identified so far are the Life Church and Missions Singapore, the Yong Thai Hang medicine shop, the Grand Hyatt and a Seletar Aerospace Heights construction site.

[Icedbs]

16 minutes ago, Thaiyotakamli said:

Should close school and offices ald

Should also stop all religious gatherings........

And stop telling everyone that there is no evidence this virus is not airborne.  Evidence is not important......common sense is. Downplaying it is not going to help.

 

[commonjunks]

5 minutes ago, Icedbs said:

Should also stop all religious gatherings........

And stop telling everyone that there is no evidence this virus is not airborne.  Evidence is not important......common sense is. Downplaying it is not going to help.

 

I think i read city harvest is conducting their activities via internet.

[RadX]

Catholic Churches suspend mass indefinitely too

[RadX]

[13177]

34 minutes ago, Thaiyotakamli said:

Should close school and offices ald

Closed school maybe possible but closed offices not easy. 

[yishunite]

19 minutes ago, commonjunks said:

I think i read city harvest is conducting their activities via internet.

I long ago decided their leadership are all secretly atheist so this makes sense 😅

Im only scared which church decide this is a test of their faith and see whether god protect them...

[BabyBlade]

 

[kobayashiGT]

50 minutes ago, Arogab said:

Cannot tahan liao, do it today with small bottle first😂

The glass you use is bigger than the bottle...😂😂😂

[Thaiyotakamli]

26 minutes ago, 13177 said:

Closed school maybe possible but closed offices not easy. 

Office aircon recirculate sure spread fast

[commonjunks]

9 minutes ago, kobayashiGT said:

The glass you use is bigger than the bottle...😂😂😂

He is using cap of bottle for measurements, glass is for illusion purpose.

[commonjunks]

5 minutes ago, Thaiyotakamli said:

Office aircon recirculate sure spread fast

With current building structures, there is no way you can turn off aircon and people can still work.
Maybe offices can hire some temp staff to measure everyone temperature twice/thrice a day and keep a note if anyone have spike in temperature (will also help in creating more jobs).

[BabyBlade]

For awareness, those who may be traveling to the Philippines soon.

The Philippines is considering a possible travel ban on Singapore to curb the spread of the coronavirus (Covid-19) outbreak from China, Manila’s health chief said Feb. 14, 2020 (Friday).

According to SCMP, Philippine Health Secretary Francisco Duque III told local media that a risk assessment was being carried out to decide whether Singapore would be included in the travel ban, which has already been imposed on China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan.

The results of the risk assessment could possibly exclude Taiwan and Hong Kong.

Countries such as South Korea, Israel, Kuwait, and Qatar have already issued travel advisories to their citizens regarding travelling to Singapore.

As of Feb. 13, 2020, Singapore has confirmed 58 cases of Covid-19. Of those, 15 have been discharged.

Philippine Foreign Secretary Teddy Locsin Jnr advised against extending the ban to Singapore, arguing restrictions should hinge on a country’s ability to contain the outbreak rather than the number of infections.

He added the 200,000-odd Filipinos based in Singapore should not be ignored either.

https://mothership.sg/2020/02/philippines-travel-ban-singapore/

[mersaylee]

23 minutes ago, kobayashiGT said:

The glass you use is bigger than the bottle...😂😂😂

I just need one tenth of that glass filled and my world would spin and warp like buildings in that movie inception 

[Arogab]

13 minutes ago, kobayashiGT said:

The glass you use is bigger than the bottle...😂😂😂

Bro, this one is small bottle(100ml). One day take 150ml is good enuf liao. One bottle of 100ml is 80SGD liao.

The glass is for whiskey 😂😂😂

[Wildfaye29]

3 minutes ago, BabyBlade said:

For awareness, those who may be traveling to the Philippines soon.

The Philippines is considering a possible travel ban on Singapore to curb the spread of the coronavirus (Covid-19) outbreak from China, Manila’s health chief said Feb. 14, 2020 (Friday).

According to SCMP, Philippine Health Secretary Francisco Duque III told local media that a risk assessment was being carried out to decide whether Singapore would be included in the travel ban, which has already been imposed on China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan.

The results of the risk assessment could possibly exclude Taiwan and Hong Kong.

Countries such as South Korea, Israel, Kuwait, and Qatar have already issued travel advisories to their citizens regarding travelling to Singapore.

As of Feb. 13, 2020, Singapore has confirmed 58 cases of Covid-19. Of those, 15 have been discharged.

Philippine Foreign Secretary Teddy Locsin Jnr advised against extending the ban to Singapore, arguing restrictions should hinge on a country’s ability to contain the outbreak rather than the number of infections.

He added the 200,000-odd Filipinos based in Singapore should not be ignored either.

baby, can u provide the source link pls? muah!

[Arogab]

2 minutes ago, mersaylee said:

I just need one tenth of that glass filled and my world would spin and warp like buildings in that movie inception 

Bro, you drive Mersaylee can employ me drink for you, I can quit my job and drink for you😋

[BabyBlade]

1 minute ago, Wildfaye29 said:

baby, can u provide the source link pls? muah!

https://mothership.sg/2020/02/philippines-travel-ban-singapore/