524 People in S’pore Under Quarantine; More Than Half Under Home Quarantine

2020-02-03 , 6:00 pm

The Wuhan virus situation worldwide has escalated beyond belief over the last few days.

On the homefront, Singapore is trying its best to contain the spread of the virus within our communities.

By isolating them.

There Are 524 People Under Quarantine In S’pore

According to National Development Minister Lawrence Wong, 524 individuals in Singapore are served Quarantine Orders (QO).

He is co-chairing the task force fighting against the coronavirus here in Singapore.

Quarantine Orders are given to healthy individuals who are at higher risk of getting the virus.

Either because they came into close contact with a carrier or has just returned from Hubei.

Quarantine Orders are serious matters and anyone caught violating them could be penalised heavily.

More Than Half Are Given Home Quarantine Orders

Out of the 524 people under quarantine in Singapore, 222 of them are quarantined in government facilities.

The remaining 302 are quarantined at home.

Individuals who are under quarantine are not allowed to leave their designated location during the period of quarantine.

And as previously mentioned, the government is providing a financial relief of $100 per day to people under quarantine orders.

That’s different from a mandatory leave of absence (LOA) where they are merely encouraged to stay home as much as possible.

The Second Line Of Defense Against The Wuhan Virus

The Wuhan virus is estimated to have an incubation period of two to fourteen days.

As the virus can be transmitted even before symptoms show up, the government is hoping to curb the spread of the virus by limiting contact with individuals of higher risks.

Individuals on home quarantine are not allowed to physically interact with other individuals living in the same premises.

They also had to report their health status every three days via a video call. Spot checks are also carried out regularly to ensure that they do not leave their homes.

While individuals on leave of absence are allowed to leave their homes, they are encouraged to stay at home most of the time.

They will also have to keep a record of where they’ve been and who they’ve been in contact with.

So that if the worst really happens and they had the coronavirus, the authorities can quickly trace and limit the damage caused.

Quickly detecting and isolating individuals carrying the virus and their close contacts is Singapore’s second line of defence.

Other Wuhan Matters in S’pore

Besides people under quarantine, Chinese nationals working in Singapore are allowed entry into the republic despite the recent ban.

However, they, together with Singaporeans who recently returned from China, will have to take a mandatory 14-day leave of absence from work or school.

NUS is also working to create a test kit that will detect the coronavirus within 30 minutes.

This, they add, will diagnose the virus with an accuracy of 99.8%, something that’s pretty groundbreaking.

Especially when you consider the fact that the Wuhan virus symptoms are really similar to the common flu, and only extensive lab tests are able to find out which it is.

S’poreans Have To Work Together

No matter whether individuals are under quarantine or taking a 14-day mandatory leave of absence, the government is asking for everyone to be kind and reasonable.

They have heard cases about Singaporeans discriminating against individuals based on their nationality or evicting Chinese nationals on leave of absences.

Everyone has to do their part for Singapore and resorting to unreasonable and irresponsible actions will only make it harder on the country.

It was added that, if necessary, the government will take drastic measures or put in new laws if such actions continue.