FLAREUP IN S’PORE SEES NEW VIRUS DEATH

First fatality in nearly 2 months following 27 cases last week

SINGAPORE saw its first fatality due to complications from Covid-19 in nearly two months over the weekend, amid a flareup of cases in a country that’s been one of the world’s most successful in containing the virus.

An 88-year-old Singaporean woman with a history of cancer and cardiac failure died on Saturday after she was treated in a ward at Tan Tock Seng Hospital, where a cluster of 27 cases has been identified since last week.

The cluster is Singapore’s first in a hospital and raises concern that the city’s hard-won success is slipping, potentially threatening efforts to open up a longawaited travel bubble with Hong Kong and host major upcoming summits, including the World Economic Forum and Shangri-la Dialogue.

“There will be many more” cases in the hospital as patients there are more susceptible given many hadn’t been vaccinated and were already sick with other illnesses, said Leong Hoe Nam, an infectious disease physician at Singapore’s Mount Elizabeth Hospital.

“Unfortunately, they are easy targets for a Covid-19 super spreader, and in turn patients who have been infected can be new super spreaders,” he said, adding that he had no doubt the government would contain the cluster.

Singapore is one of the more successful spots in the world in curbing the virus, similar to others in Asia that have largely halted the spread but where virtual elimination is being challenged by sporadic flareups.

In a bid to stay at zero local cases, these places — including New Zealand, Australia, Hong Kong and China — react aggressively to small numbers of infections.

Already, fewer people have been allowed at malls and large stores since Saturday and campsites were closed for two weeks. Singapore will also reduce the operating capacity of attractions to 50 per cent from 65 per cent for a week from May 7, and urged people to limit social gatherings to two per day and stay home where possible.

While Singapore is also one the fastest in Asia on vaccination, it trails far behind leading countries globally including Israel, United States and United Kingdom, which have administered 10.5 million (57.7 per cent), 246 million (38.2 per cent) and 49.8 million (37.3 per cent) doses respectively, according to Bloomberg’s vaccination tracker.

At 2.21 million doses given up to April 18, Singapore has inoculated just 19.4 per cent of its population, with less than half having received both jabs.

Shares of flag carrier Singapore Airlines Ltd dropped as much as 3.2 per cent yesterday, the most in about two weeks, with stock broker UOB Kay Hian Pte saying the increase in cases threatened the reopening of the economy.

The decline came even as the airline said it had raised about S$2 billion to boost funds as it’s hit by pandemic-related restrictions.

Singapore has had more than 61,200 total Covid-19 cases, more than 54,500 of them in people living in migrant worker dorms.