News

1,012 COVID-19 Cases Reported on 19 Sep; New Clusters at 2 Nursing Homes

2021-09-20 , 9:30 am

If you take a close look at the following graph, you can see that the coronavirus is a jerk.

Back in May last year, we must have believed we had seen the worst of the COVID-19 outbreak in Singapore, as daily infections crossed the 1,000 mark on four consecutive days.

In the past two days, infections have once again surpassed the 1,000 mark, except it will likely continue to increase.

Unsurprisingly, when you have such a high number of infections, new clusters are going to form, and at places we enjoy visiting.

If you missed the Ministry of Health’s (MOH) COVID-19 update yesterday, here’s everything you need to know:

1,009 Locally Transmitted Cases; 919 From the Community

1,009 locally transmitted cases were recorded yesterday (19 Sep), 919 of whom were from the community.

The remaining 90 cases were from migrant workers’ dormitories.

Among the local cases included 321 seniors above the age of 60.

Three imported cases were also detected, one detected upon arrival and two who developed the illness during their quarantine.

Four New Large Clusters Identified

Four new large clusters have been identified by MOH, the biggest of which formed at Toa Payoh Lorong 8 Market and Food Centre with 41 cases.

The cluster began with workplace transmission but eventually spread to household contacts of cases.

“Of the 41 cases, 24 are staff and 17 are household contacts of cases. All workers at the market and food centre will be tested,” MOH said.

The three other clusters formed at Woodlands Care Home, Windsor Convalescent Home, and a My Little Campus located in Yishun.

The three clusters have 12, 10, and 11 infections respectively.

In the preschool cluster, the virus has spread among both students and staff; nine students have been infected, along with two staff members.

Three Bus Interchange Clusters Grow

Three of the eight clusters linked to staff working at bus interchanges have also continued to grow. They are:

Boon Lay Bus Interchange staff – five new cases, 242 in total
Punggol Bus Interchange staff – three new cases, 70 in total
Tampines Bus Interchange staff – nine new cases, 162 in total

There is still no evidence of spread to commuters.

873 Cases in Hospitals; 21 in ICU

At present, there are 873 COVID-19 cases warded in the hospital, most of whom are well and under observation.

118 severe cases require oxygen supplementation, and 21 are in critical condition in the intensive care unit (ICU).

Of these 139 cases, 116 are seniors above the age of 60.

Our vaccination progress remains at 82%. 84% have received at least one dose.

ICU Capacity Holding Up, But Hospitals Coming “Under Pressure”

With the rise in cases, some are understandably worried about our healthcare facilities getting overwhelmed.

According to Health Minister Ong Ye Kung, accident and emergency (A&E) departments and general wards in Singapore’s hospitals are indeed coming “under pressure”.

Fortunately, though, ICU capacity is “still holding up”.

Mr Ong said we’ve only managed to avoid overwhelming our healthcare system thanks to the high rate of vaccinations here.

Nevertheless, the authorities are encouraging younger, fully vaccinated people to recover from home. They have also been admitting patients to community care facilities and will set up more of these facilities this week.

Understand the importance of vaccination here: