Singapore sees first Covid-19 death in 3 months

SINGAPORE - A 64-year-old man, who had a history of hypertension, has died from complications due to Covid-19, said the Ministry of Health (MOH) on Monday (Oct 12). The permanent resident is the 28th patient to die from the virus here.

He had been working in India since December 2019 and was placed on stay-home notice when he returned to Singapore on Sept 23.

He was confirmed to have the coronavirus infection on Oct 4.

Singapore General Hospital has reached out to his family and is extending assistance to them.

Previously, the last patient to die here from Covid-19 related complications was a 62-year-old man on July 14, nearly three months ago. MOH had said then that the man had a history of diabetes mellitus, hypertension and hyperlipidaemia, and that he was diagnosed with the coronavirus on April 30.

There were four new coronavirus cases on Monday.

They included one community case, who is a family member of previously confirmed cases, said MOH.

She had been identified as a contact of two other cases and had been placed on quarantine earlier. All three cases arrived from India on Sept 16, and were placed on stay-home notice at a dedicated facility.

There were also two imported cases, comprising one permanent resident who returned to Singapore from the Philippines and one work pass holder who arrived from India and the UAE.

They had both been placed on stay-home notice upon arrival in Singapore, and were tested even though they were asymptomatic.

A migrant worker living in a dormitory made up the remaining one of four new coronavirus patients announced on Monday, taking Singapore's total to 57,880. He had been identified earlier as a contact of previous cases, and had already been quarantined to prevent further transmission. He was tested during quarantine to determine his status, even though he is asymptomatic.

MOH also announced that the cluster at 9 Sungei Kadut avenue has been closed as it has not had new cases linked to it for 28 days, or two incubation periods.

The average number of new daily cases in the community in a week has decreased from an average of one case per day in the week before, to an average of fewer than one per day in the past week.

The number of unlinked cases in the community has also decreased from an average of fewer than 1 case per day in the week before, to none in the past week.

With 23 cases discharged on Monday, 57,713 patients have fully recovered from the disease.

A total of 48 patients remain in hospital, with none in intensive care, while 76 are recuperating in community facilities.

Singapore has had 28 deaths from Covid-19 complications, while 15 who tested positive have died of other causes.

For the latest updates on the coronavirus, visit here.

This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.