Instruction notice placards hang on a barrier as a man wearing a facemask as a prevention measure against the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus queues to enter a wet market in Singapore on April 22, 2020. / AFP / ROSLAN RAHMAN
The total number of coronavirus cases in Singapore exceeded 10,000 on Wednesday as infections among migrant workers living in dormitories continued to surge.
As of noon, the city-state preliminarily recorded 1,016 new cases, according to a statement by the health ministry, bringing the total number of Covid-19 infections to 10,141. Of the new cases, the vast majority are work permit holders living in dormitories across the island, while 15 cases are Singaporeans or permanent residents, the statement said.
The rising number of cases in the facilities, where more than 200,000 people live, has complicated efforts to curb the spread of the virus in Singapore, even as the government looks for new ways to house workers who may be sharing living spaces with 10 or more people.
On Tuesday, Singapore said it’ll halt the daily movement of workers in and out of all dormitories, including those that are purpose built, factory converted or temporary quarters for construction laborers. Healthy workers in essential services have been moved to other facilities.
"The large number of cases at the dorms is a serious problem,” Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said in a address to the nation on Tuesday. "To assess the extent of the spread, we have tested aggressively.
Not only those who reported sick, or showed fever or flu symptoms. But also those who were well and asymptomatic.”
Adjustments
Foreign-worker cases now account for a steep majority of all confirmed infections in Singapore. The government has converted military camps and vacant public housing into interim housing facilities for those who are healthy. Meanwhile, it is also considering using cruise ships to accommodate workers who have recovered from the coronavirus and tested negative.
All in, about 10,000 essential workers have been transferred out of the dormitories, Minister for Manpower Josephine Teo said at a briefing on Tuesday.
"We know that there are going to be some adjustments to be made by the companies and we seek the cooperation of both employers and workers on this new condition,” she said of the new measures preventing dormitory residents from going to work. "It is a necessary measure to minimize the risk of transmissions.”
