Geylang Serai Market to close for 3 days after detection of Covid-19 cases; shopkeepers left in disarray

SINGAPORE - The Geylang Serai Market will be closed for three days from Monday (Nov 1) till Wednesday, after Covid-19 cases were detected there over the past seven days.

Fliers posted at the market by the National Environment Agency (NEA) said the venue would be closed to facilitate deep cleaning and disinfection of the premises.

The fliers do not state the reason for the closure.

However, a message circulating on WhatsApp said the closure comes after Covid-19 cases were detected there.

Shopkeepers were left in disarray as rumours of the closure started floating around on social media on Saturday afternoon (Oct 30) and were confirmed by NEA officers at the market on Sunday morning.

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Third-generation butcher Mohamad Shahid, 32, said many of his neighbouring stallholders were looking forward to an uptick in business ahead of the Hindu festival of Deepavali, which falls on Nov 4 this year.

"Many of the shops here like mine are selling mutton, and, in this period, they usually get a lot of customers from the Hindu community," said Mr Shahid.

He added that many of the stallholders bemoaned the closure of the market just days before the festival.

Mr Shahid said there were long queues of customers waiting to enter the market on Sunday morning, but that by 1pm, there were no customers to be seen in the market, and many shops had closed.

The Straits Times has contacted NEA and the Ministry of Health for comments.