A Bangladeshi man who came to Singapore to seek medical treatment that was not related to Covid-19 later tested positive for the coronavirus, making him the first imported case here since May 10.
He is among the 407 new coronavirus cases reported in Singapore on Sunday (June 14), said the Ministry of Health (MOH).
The patient arrived in Singapore on Wednesday (June 10). His health declaration submitted before immigration clearance indicated that he did not have any Covid-19 symptoms, and had not been diagnosed or suspected to have the infection.
He was subsequently tested for Covid-19 and his results came back positive on Saturday (June 13).
MOH said that the imported case was placed on stay-home notice upon arrival in Singapore, and could only leave his designated place of residence for medical consultation and follow-up.
The Health Ministry said that contact tracing is ongoing, and that identified close contacts have been placed on quarantine.
The Straits Times understands the man does not hold a long-term pass here.
While Singapore banned short term visitors at the end of March, some of these visitors have been allowed entry due to extenuating circumstances. In April, 748 visitors entered Singapore.
The new cases on Sunday bring the total number of Covid-19 infections here to 40,604.
There were nine community cases comprising four Singaporeans, one work pass holder and four work permit holders.
Migrant workers living in dormitories made up the remaining 397 cases.
The FairPrice supermarket at 20 Lengkok Bahru was added to the list of public places visited by Covid-19 patients while they were infectious.
With 781 more patients discharged on Sunday, 29,579 have fully recovered after being tested positive for Covid-19.
A total of 238 patients remain in hospital, including two in intensive care, while 10,751 are recuperating in community facilities.
So far, 26 people here have died from complications due to Covid-19. Ten others who tested positive for the coronavirus have died from other causes.
Globally, the virus outbreak, which began in December last year, has infected close to 7.9 million people. More than 433,000 people have died.
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This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.
