4 People Developed Skin Irritation in Sentosa Beaches; NEA Has Since Responded to the Incidents

Looks like the COVID-19 infection isn’t the only one we should be looking out for, lest we forget other bacteria and germs still exist, just that they’re less bad.

Going to the beach for a relaxing day of fun in the sun is always great, but one’s guard must not be let down, as these people have learnt.

Trip To The Beach Gone Wrong

Four people suddenly developed a skin irritation after hanging out at two separate beaches in Sentosa on two different occasions.

The irritation caused them to be admitted into the National University Hospital on 23 July to remove pus out of the wounds that had been infected via an incision and drainage surgery.

They had to stay in the hospital for three days.

Following that, they discovered that their neighbour’s five-year-old son had also developed a skin infection after visiting the Hydro Dash obstacle course at Palawan Beach on 4 August.

He allegedly had an itchy boil the size of a $1 coin right below his knee.

It Was Because Of Staph

Who’s Staph, you may ask.

Staph isn’t someone’s name, but rather the short form name of the Staphylococcus aureus germ, which had infected the victims.

Commonly found in at least three out of every ten people, the germ resides in humans’ nostrils and skin, as well as in the environment.

It isn’t harmful, however, and would usually just cause an infected person minor irritation.

Just like the COVID-19 virus, the bacteria can be passed on from person to person, and retain on surfaces.

It is also a common cause of food poisoning.

NEA Does Not Check For Staph

As the bacteria is largely harmless and very common, the National Environment Agency (NEA) doesn’t actually do checks for it in Singapore’s waters, stating that it isn’t specified in the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) guidelines as well.

That doesn’t mean that waters in Singapore are dirty, for NEA does actually conduct weekly checks on the waters at seven beaches, including Sentosa’s. They are usually monitored for enterococcus, which is a harmful bacterium living in animal and human faeces.

Last month’s enterococcus counts were within the limits specified by WHO for activities involving contact such as swimming, commented the NEA.

Although it was unclear how the family and the boy had gotten infected with the virus, Associate Professor Hsu Li Yang, an infectious disease doctor at the National University of Singapore’s Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health, said it was possible for the family to already have carried the bacteria.

Thereafter, micro-injuries sustained might’ve led to the wounds becoming infected with it.

Speculating that the family members might have passed the bacteria on to one another due to contact, Dr Leong Hoe Nam, an infectious disease specialist at Mount Elizabeth Novena Hospital, affirmed the statements.

NEA’s Reminder

Despite the relaxed restrictions to going out in public now in the face of the pandemic, beachgoers should still pay attention to maintaining good hygiene while at the beach, reminded the NEA.

“Beach users are advised to regularly wash their hands, avoid swimming or wading in bodies of water with open wounds, and shower after exposure to marine water,” they said in a statement.

So the next time you go to the beach, besides not forgetting your sunscreen, don’t forget to keep clean too.