Day: August 24, 2022

Posted on

Singapore Reported 3,627 New COVID-19 Cases

Singapore reported 3,627 new cases of COVID-19 yesterday, bringing the total tally to 1,822,187.

Of the new cases, 316 cases were detected through PCR (polymerase chain reaction) tests, and 3,311 through ART (antigen rapid test) tests, according to statistics released by the Ministry of Health.

Among the PCR cases, 284 were local transmissions and 32 were imported cases.

Among the ART cases, with mild symptoms and assessed to be of low risk, there were 3,122 local transmissions and 189 imported cases, respectively.

A total of 359 cases are currently warded in hospitals, with eight cases in intensive care units.

No death was reported from COVID-19 yesterday, making the total death toll stay unchanged at 1,584, the ministry said.

Source: NAM NEWS NETWORK

Posted on

Two Killed In Landslide In Indonesia’s West Papua

JAKARTA– A 1.5-metre flood and severe landslide, struck Sorong city in Indonesia’s West Papua province yesterday, killing two people, the province’s Regional Disaster Mitigation Agency said, in a statement.

The victims were a 35-year-old mother and her eight-year-old son. Their house was hit by the landslide, when they and the kid’s father were inside. The father was injured and had been rushed to the nearest hospital.

The flood and landslide were caused by heavy rains in the city, since Monday. As of last night, the floods had not yet receeded, inundating thousands of houses and disrupting public activities, according to the agency.

The flood blocked road access and around 9,000 families were forced to leave their houses.

Source: NAM NEWS NETWORK

Posted on

COVID-19 jab to remain a condition for new long-term passes and work passes in Singapore

COVID-19 vaccination will continue to be a condition for the approval of all new applications for long-term passes and work passes in Singapore, the Health Ministry (MOH) said Wednesday.

In a statement issued, the ministry said this is to sustain the high vaccination rates in the Singapore population, support the safe reopening of the society and economy, and minimise business disruptions.

As for renewal applications, MOH noted that vaccination will also continue to be required for the renewal of existing work passes for Work Permit Holders and S Pass Holders from the Construction, Marine Shipyard, and Process sectors or residing in dormitories.

The requirement is needed given that their worksites and dormitories are settings at higher risk of disease spread, it said.

However, MOH said other work pass renewals will no longer be subjected to a vaccination requirement.

The revised vaccination requirements for work pass renewals will take effect from Oct 1, 2022, it said, adding that the Manpower Ministry’s (MOM) website can be referred to for more details.

Updating on border measures, MOH said all non-fully vaccinated travellers entering Singapore from Aug 29, 2022 will no longer be required to undergo a seven-day stay-home notice (SHN) upon arrival, nor be subjected to an exit-SHN Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) test.

However, the ministry said they will continue to be required to test negative on a Pre-Departure Test within two days before departing for Singapore.

Non-fully vaccinated Short-Term Visitors (STVs) will also continue to be required to purchase COVID-19 travel insurance to cover the duration of their stay in Singapore.

Currently, non-fully vaccinated Long-Term Pass Holders (LTPHs) and STVs aged 13 and above are required to apply for entry approval to enter Singapore.

The requirement will also be lifted from Aug 29, 2022, it said.

As LTPHs are expected to stay in Singapore for a longer period of time, they will continue to be required to meet all Vaccination-Differentiated Safe Management Measures (VDS) requirements after their arrival in Singapore, said MOH.

According to the statement, infection numbers in the community here have steadily declined across all age groups since late July, and the week-on-week infection ratio has fallen below 0.7.

As of Aug 23, 2022, average daily infections over a seven-day period fell to 2,700 – down from a peak of 10,200 in mid-July.

Source: NAM NEWS NETWORK

Posted on

S.Korea Reported 139,339 New COVID-19 Cases

SEOUL, Aug 24 (NNN-YONHAP) – South Korea reported 139,339 new COVID-19 cases as of midnight, compared to 24 hours ago, raising the total number of infections to 22,588,640, the health authorities said today.

The daily caseload was down from 150,258 the previous day and lower than 180,763 tallied a week ago, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA).

For the past week, the daily average number of confirmed cases was 129,473.

Among the new cases, 456 were imported from overseas, lifting the total to 56,160.

The number of infected people who were in serious condition stood at 573, up 86 from the previous day.

Sixty-three more deaths were confirmed, bringing the death toll to 26,224. The total fatality rate was 0.12 percent.

Source: NAM NEWS NETWORK

Posted on

Malaysia Reports 2,722 New COVID-19 Infections, 11 More Deaths

KUALA LUMPUR– Malaysia reported 2,722 new COVID-19 infections as of midnight, bringing the national total to 4,762,552, according to the health ministry.

There are five new imported cases, with 2,717 cases being local transmissions, data released on the ministry’s website showed.

Another 11 deaths have been reported, pushing the death toll to 36,166.

The ministry reported 4,856 new recoveries, bringing the total number of cured and discharged to 4,690,835.

There are 35,551 active cases, with 68 being held in intensive care and 41 of those in need of assisted breathing.

Source: NAM NEWS NETWORK

Posted on

COVID-19: Singapore to start booster shot for children aged 5 to 11 years in 4Q

Singapore is preparing to start boosting children aged five to 11 years with PfizerBioNTech/Comirnaty vaccine in the fourth quarter of this year, the Health Ministry said Wednesday.

The ministry said it has accepted the recommendations by the Expert Committee on COVID-19 Vaccination (EC19V), in full.

The EC19V has recommended that children of that age receive one booster dose of the vaccine, from five months after the second dose of their primary vaccination series, to sustain protection against severe illness.

“This will also strengthen our preparation for the next infection wave,” it said in a statement issued here, today.

MOH added that the Health Sciences Authority has just extended the authorisation of Moderna’s Spikevax COVID-19 vaccine via the Pandemic Special Access Route (PSAR) to children, including very young children aged six months up to 5-year-old.

“A decision on the recommendation for vaccination of this age group is expected soon. If approved, we will time it together with the booster exercise for children aged five to 11,” it said.

In a separate statement, the EC19V said the children aged five to 11 years were recommended to receive the PfizerBioNTech/Comirnaty vaccine as it provides stronger protection against hospitalisation and severe disease from COVID-19.

“There is now local and international data indicating that antibody levels and vaccine protection against COVID-19 hospitalisation decline with time in this age group, just as it does with adolescents and adults,” it said.

In this age group, MOH said the Pfizer-BioNTech/Comirnaty booster vaccine has been shown to increase antibody levels to more than twice the levels achieved after two primary doses, which helps sustain the level of protection against severe disease.

“Common side effects in children who received the booster dose were generally mild, similar to those from the first two doses,” it said.

As of August 2022, the ministry said more than 1,000,000 booster doses have been safely administered to children aged five to 11 years in the United States of America under the recommendation of the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The EC19V said it has assessed that booster vaccination is beneficial for protection against severe COVID-19 in children age five to 11 years old.

“While children of this age group are at low risk of severe COVID-19 disease, some children have required hospitalisation, and developed life-threatening disease requiring intensive care treatment or severe complications such as Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C).

Source: NAM NEWS NETWORK