SINGAPORE: Shopping malls Jurong Point and White Sands were added to the list of public places visited by COVID-19 community cases during their infectious period, the Ministry of Health (MOH) said on Friday (Feb 5).
Additional visits by community cases to shopping malls Northpoint City and Sun Plaza were also added to the list.
The full list of locations is as follows:
(Table: Ministry of Health)
Those identified as close contacts of confirmed cases would already have been notified by MOH.
READ: Bangladeshi dorm resident tests positive for COVID-19 nearly 2 months after arrival, previous swabs negative
As a precautionary measure, individuals who were at these locations during the specified timings should monitor their health closely for 14 days from the date of their visit.
“They should see a doctor promptly if they develop symptoms of acute respiratory infection (such as cough, sore throat and runny nose), as well as fever and loss of taste or smell, and inform the doctor of their exposure history,” said the ministry.
There is no need to avoid places where confirmed cases of COVID-19 have been, added MOH.
“The National Environment Agency will engage the management of affected premises to provide guidance on cleaning and disinfection,” said the ministry.
Singapore reported 25 new COVID-19 infections as of noon on Friday, of which two were locally transmitted cases.
READ: 2 locally transmitted cases among 25 new COVID-19 infections in Singapore
One new infection was reported in a foreign worker dormitory, while another was a community case. The dormitory case was the first such infection reported since Jan 16.
The community case, identified as Case 59980, is a 56-year-old Singaporean man who works as an import officer at Yusen Logistics and is based at Changi Cargo Megaplex.
His job does not entail interaction with flight passengers, said MOH.
The man developed a cough on Feb 2 but did not seek medical attention and continued to go to work, said the ministry.
As he had earlier been identified as a contact of a tuberculosis case at his workplace, he went to the Tuberculosis Control Unit on Feb 4 for screening. He was tested for COVID-19 there after he reported his symptoms.
The man’s COVID-19 test result came back positive on the same day and he was taken to the National Centre for Infectious Diseases in an ambulance.
He had earlier tested negative for COVID-19 during a testing operation for airport cargo workers on Jan 18.
The man’s serological test result has come back negative, indicating that this is likely a current infection, said MOH.
The dormitory case is a 31-year-old Bangladeshi man who arrived in Singapore on Dec 13.
He stays at a dormitory at 1 Soon Lee Street, and had yet to start work since arriving in Singapore.
The work pass holder served his stay-home notice at a dedicated facility until Dec 27.
His swab test on Dec 23 was negative for COVID-19, as was a previous rostered routine testing on Jan 13.
The man, who is asymptomatic, tested positive during another rostered routine testing on Feb 4.
“His serology test has come back positive, but given the relatively long time interval between his travel and positive COVID-19 test, we have classified this case as locally transmitted,” said MOH.
The remaining 23 cases reported on Friday were imported infections and were placed on stay-home notice upon arrival in Singapore.
As of Friday, Singapore has reported a total of 59,649 COVID-19 cases, with 29 fatalities.
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