COVID-19 Cluster in Bukit Merah View Market Grows to 16 After 14 Jun’s Cases

Phase 2 (Heightened Alert) is officially over now, and the number of community cases should be very low by now, after two weeks of tightened restrictions.

Unfortunately, it seems like the coronavirus didn’t get the memo.

In the last few days, the number of community cases has been on the rise, with 25 new infections yesterday (14 Jun), 19 of which were locally transmitted.

Here are the details.

115 Bukit Merah View Market & Food Centre Cluster

The 115 Bukit Merah View Market & Food Centre cluster that was identified on Sunday (13 Jun) continues to grow, as 10 of yesterday (14 Jun)’s 18 new community cases are linked to it.

They are:

  • A 40-year-old Singaporean woman who is a food stall vendor at 115 Bukit Merah View Market & Food Centre
  • A 71-year-old Singaporean woman who works as a food stall vendor at 115 Bukit Merah View Market & Food Centre
  • A 21-year-old Singaporean woman who works as an IT engineer at IBM (Changi Business Park Central 1)
  • A 47-year-old Singaporean man who works as a cooking assistant at 115 Bukit Merah View Market & Food Centre
  • A 94-year-old Singaporean man who is a retiree and regularly goes to Telok Blangah Parcview Active Ageing Care Hub
  • A 67 year-old Singaporean man who is a general worker at a food stall at 115 Bukit Merah View Market & Food Centre
  • A 29-year-old India woman who is currently unemployed
  • A 17-year-old Singaporean man who is a student at ITE College Central and has not gone to school since 16 May
  • A 64-year-old Singaporean man who is a retiree
  • A 42-year-old Singaporean man who works as a hawker at Telok Blangah Drive Food Centre

The 17-year-old ITE student is a household contact of a previous case.

He developed a fever and cough on 11 June and sought medical attention at a GP clinic the next day, where he was administered both an ART and PCR test. His ART result was negative, but his PCR returned a positive result. His serology test result is pending.

A total of 16 COVID-19 infections are now linked to the cluster at Bukit Merah View market.

It’s certainly a good thing that the authorities closed the market to the public.

Case 64184 Cluster

Another six community infections were linked to the Case 64814 cluster, who is a male engineer who works at Ecoxplore.

The new cases are:

  • A 42-year-old Indian woman who is employed by SQ 1 Development Pte Ltd as a cleaner at Ascent (Science Park Drive)
  • A 29-year-old Indian woman who is a student at Amity Global Institute, Singapore and has been having lessons from home
  • A 45-year-old Malaysian woman who works as an analyst at Pinnacle Credit Services
  • A 46-year-old female Philippines national who is a foreign domestic worker
  • A 33-year-old Malaysian man who is employed as a cleaner by Eunike Living Pte Ltd
  • A 26-year-old Singaporean woman who is employed by Cleen First Services Pte Ltd as a cleaner at Emerald Park condominium

The 33-year-old cleaner was placed on quarantine on 12 June after being identified as a household contact of a previous case.

He is asymptomatic and was detected when he was tested on 12 June during quarantine. His test result came back positive the next day. His serology test result is pending.

Other Linked & Unlinked Cases

The remaining linked case who is not connected to any cluster is a 16-year-old Singaporean student at Anglo Chinese School (Independent) (ACS(I)).

He was last in school on 16 May.

Fortunately, of the 18 community cases, only one was unlinked, namely a 79-year-old Singaporean man who is employed by AO ServicePro Pte Ltd as a cleaner at 375 and 376 Clementi Avenue 4.

He received his first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine on 5 June, and tested positive on 13 June.

1 Dormitory Case & 6 Imported Cases

A new infection in a dormitory has been identified, after a 26-year-old Indian man who works as an electrician at GT ENGRG Pte Ltd tested positive on 14 June.

He resides at Westlite Juniper (23 Mandai Estate).

The remaining six cases were all from abroad:

  • One Singaporean and two Singapore Permanent Residents who returned from Bangladesh and India
  • One Long-Term Visit Pass holder who arrived from the Philippines
  • One Work Permit holder who arrived from Malaysia
  • One Short-Term Visit Pass holder who arrived from Indonesia for a work project in Singapore

All had already been placed on Stay-Home Notice (SHN) upon arrival here.

138 Cases in Hospitals

At the moment, there are 138 confirmed COVID-19 cases in hospitals, most of whom are stable or improving. Two are in critical condition in the intensive care unit.

Another 235 cases with mild symptoms or lower risk factors are isolated and cared for at community facilities.

25 more cases have been discharged from hospitals or community isolation facilities recently.

Feature Image: Google Maps