Record high of 1,457 new COVID cases reported in Singapore; 3 more deaths

A man wearing a face mask passes a sign put up to encourage social distancing during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, at Marina Bay in Singapore, September 22, 2021. REUTERS/Edgar Su
A man wearing a face mask passes a sign put up to encourage social distancing during the coronavirus disease outbreak in Singapore on 22 September, 2021. (PHOTO: Reuters)

SINGAPORE — The Ministry of Health (MOH) on Wednesday (22 September) confirmed a record-high of 1,457 new COVID-19 cases in Singapore – taking the country's total case count to 81,356 – and three more deaths due to the disease.

Wednesday's count marks the highest ever daily new COVID-19 cases reported in the city-state, followed by 1,426 infections on 20 April last year.

Singapore's 66th through 68th COVID-19 fatalities are two Singaporean men and a Singaporean woman, aged 50, 65, and 90, respectively. They are among 13 people who have died from the disease here this month.

The youngest fatality of the three, who died on Tuesday, tested positive for COVID-19 on 13 September. The 50-year-old man had not been vaccinated against the disease and had no known medical conditions, said the MOH.

The older man, who died on Wednesday, tested positive on 1 September. He had not been vaccinated and had a history of diabetes mellitus, end-stage renal failure as well as hypertension.

The eldest fatality, who died on Tuesday, tested positive on 13 September and had been vaccinated against COVID-19. The woman had a history of stroke, asthma, hypertension, and high cholesterol, "which, together with her advanced age, made her more susceptible to severe illness", said the MOH.

Of Wednesday's 1,457 new cases, 1,453 are local infections: 1,277 are in the community, while 176 are dormitory residents. Among the local cases are 389 people above the age of 60, said the MOH.

The remaining four cases are imported, of whom three were detected upon their arrival in Singapore, while one developed the illness during their stay-home notice or isolation period.

Twelve active COVID-19 clusters in Singapore, including three dorms, are being closely monitored, said the MOH.

Of the list of monitored clusters, the highest number of 22 new cases – already quarantined – was added to the cluster at the Blue Stars dorm. The cluster now has 159 cases.

Seventeen new cases – already quarantined – were added to the cluster at the Avery Lodge dorm, totalling 160 infections. The new cases were identified through pre-emptive testing.

Eight new cases – identified through testing operations – were also added to another dorm cluster at Woodlands. The Woodlands Dormitory now has 54 cases.

All three clusters were classified as "intra-dormitory transmissions" among residents with no evidence of spread beyond the dorms, said the MOH.

Daily new cases in Singapore are expected to rise to 2,000 by early October, if the current rate of infection persists, authorities here have said.

145 require oxygen supplementation; 19 in ICU

Over 66,600 cases in Singapore, or some 99 per cent of the overall total, have fully recovered from their infection and have been discharged from the hospital.

As of Wednesday, 1,083 cases are currently warded, most of whom are well and under observation.

There are currently 145 cases of serious illness requiring oxygen supplementation and 19 in critical condition in the intensive care unit (ICU).

Of those who have fallen very ill, 134 are patients above the age of 60, said the MOH.

Apart from the 68 patients who have died from COVID-19 complications, 15 others who tested positive for the virus were determined to have died from unrelated causes, including three whose deaths were attributed to a heart attack and another four whose deaths were attributed to coronary heart disease.

Over the last 28 days, the percentage of local cases who were asymptomatic or had mild symptoms is 97.9 per cent. Over the same period, 260 cases required oxygen supplementation, 25 had been in the ICU, and 11 died.

As of Tuesday, about 9 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been administered under the national vaccination programme. Some 4.58 million have received at least one dose of the vaccine, with some 4.46 million having completed the full vaccination regimen.

Separately, 186,019 doses of other vaccines recognised in the World Health Organization’s Emergency Use Listing (WHO EUL) have been administered as of Tuesday, covering 87,177 individuals.

This means that 82 per cent of the population have completed their full regimen, or received two doses of COVID-19 vaccines, and 84 per cent have received at least one dose.

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