Singapore reports 517 new coronavirus cases

Migrant workers living in dormitories comprise most of the confirmed cases. ST PHOTO: KUA CHEE SIONG

SINGAPORE — There are 517 new coronavirus cases as of Thursday noon in Singapore, including 15 community cases.

Of these, two are Singaporeans or permanent residents and 13 are work pass holders.

All 15 community cases are asymptomatic. They are close contacts of earlier confirmed cases and have already been placed under quarantine.

Migrant workers living in dormitories comprise the rest.

This brings the country’s total to 36,922.

More details will be released later on Thursday, the MOH said.

There were seven cases in the community on Wednesday, and experts said it showed that there were still hidden reservoirs of Covid-19 infections in the community.

Six out of the seven cases – five Indian national men and a Chinese national woman – were asymptomatic but have been linked to previous cases.

The only unlinked case, an 81-year-old Singaporean woman, began showing symptoms on May 29 and tested positive on Tuesday.

MOH also said that of the 39,000 pre-school staff who have been tested, only one out of the 14 who tested positive for the virus was likely to be a recent infection.

The other 13 likely got the virus some time ago as they were no longer infectious at the time of screening.

Two new clusters were also confirmed, both dormitories. They are at 12 Kwong Min Road and 8 Tuas South Lane.

The daily average for new community cases has decreased to four in the past week from six the week before, said MOH. Across the same periods, the number of unlinked cases has remained stable at an average of two per day.

As of Wednesday, 407 more patients were discharged, bringing the total number of recovered patients to 23, 573.

Currently, 334 confirmed cases are in hospital, with five in critical condition in intensive care.

Twenty-four have died from Covid-19 complications, while nine who tested positive for Covid-19 have died of other causes.