1,504 COVID-19 Cases Reported on 23 Sep; 2 COVID-19 Deaths Reported

2021-09-24 , 8:35 am

With case numbers increasing nearly every day, we should get used to the fact that our “record number” of cases will constantly change.

And yesterday was no different.

1,504 new COVID-19 cases were reported yesterday, the highest since the pandemic began last year.

The local infections are made up of 1,218 community cases and 273 dormitory residents.

In addition, 13 cases from abroad were detected.

2 COVID-19 Deaths Reported

Sadly, with the virus spreading so rapidly, those more vulnerable to the disease are going to be at risk of severe illness and death.

Two COVID-19 fatalities were reported yesterday, taking our death toll to 70.

One of them, a 93-year-old woman, tested positive for COVID-19 on 17 Sep. She passed away from complications yesterday.

She had a history of heart failure, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia, and was not vaccinated against the disease.

The other case was a 71-year-old woman who had tested positive for COVID-19 yesterday. She died on the same day.

She was unvaccinated and had a history of cancer.

In just the past two months alone, 33 COVID-19 deaths have been reported, nearly half the total death toll.

New Clusters Linked to Preschool & 2 Dorms

A new large cluster has been identified at Maple Bear Preschool, located at Orchard Road.

With three new cases yesterday, the cluster now has 12 infections, comprising eight students, three staff members, and one household contact of a case.

Two new clusters linked to dormitories were also discovered.

The first is Bukit Batok Road/Plantation Crescent dormitory, which has 23 cases.

The second cluster is linked to Tampines Dormitory which currently has 26 cases.

In both dorm clusters, infections involved intra-dormitory transmission among residents with no evidence of spread beyond the dormitory, the Ministry of Health (MOH) said.

In total, MOH is monitoring 13 large COVID-19 clusters.

1,120 COVID-19 Cases in Hospital; 23 in ICU

At the moment, there are 1,120 COVID-19 cases in the hospital, most of whom are well and under observation.

163 severe cases require oxygen supplementation and 23 are in critical condition in the intensive care unit.

Of these serious cases, 155 are seniors above the age of 60.

Over the last four weeks, 97.9% of the local cases were either asymptomatic or had mild symptoms.

As of Wednesday, 82% of our population has been fully vaccinated. 84% have received at least one dose.

Tightened Measures For Public & Private Hospitals

In a news release, MOH noted that with the rise in community cases, more infections have been detected amongst hospital staff, patients, and visitors.

“The detection of these cases had led to ward closures and staff quarantine which had impacted some hospitals, putting a strain on hospital bed capacity and staffing at a time when more hospital beds are ramped up to care for hospitalised COVID-19 patients,” it said.

This is why it will tighten measures at public and private hospitals.

From today (24 Sep), all visitations to hospital wards will be suspended for four weeks, until 23 Oct.

However, the following patient groups may be allowed visitation on a case-by-case basis, as assessed by the hospital:

1. Patients who are in critical condition
2. Paediatric patients
3. Birthing/post-partum mothers
4. Patients requiring additional care support from caregivers. (Examples include the assistance of inpatients who have mental incapacities or family members who are undergoing caregiver training to better care for their loved ones after hospital discharge.)

The above patients will only be allowed one pre-designated visitor, with one visit per day.

Patients who are in critical condition may be allowed up to five pre-designated visitors, with a maximum of two visitors at the patient’s bedside at any one time.

Regardless of vaccination status, all visitors approved to visit will need to produce a valid negative antigen rapid test (ART) or polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test result obtained within the last 24 hours of each visit.

The test must be supervised by MOH-approved COVID-19 test providers.

Visitors must not use patients’ toilets during visits and must refrain from sitting on their beds.

Learn more about vaccination and their importance here: