A hawker centre at Lorong 5 Toa Payoh has just been closed (presumably for two weeks as all affected hawkers must serve SHN) after a stall assistant at a satay joint there tested positive for Covid-19.

It is understood that the stall hand at Toa Payoh Lorong 5 Blk 75 Food Centre had visited a KTV lounge on Sunday (Jul 11), and is part of a growing cluster linked to several KTV lounges and nightclubs here. As of Wednesday (Jul 14), a total of 54 cases are tied to the cluster.

All of the stallholders must undergo COVID-19 testing and quarantine. According to the National Environment Agency website, there are 36 food stalls at the Lor 5 food centre.

“I had to throw away a lot of food. I just bought some fresh items,” says the owner of Traditional Claypot Rice, Nelson Lee, in Mandarin. “We won’t be able to do business for two weeks [while on SHN], but after that, how long will it take for the crowds to come back? I think at least one month after.”

“It’s a big headache,” the 55-year-old adds.

The hawker’s unit is at #01-32, “quite close” to the affected satay stall. “Of course I’m worried,” says the hawker, who is fully vaccinated. “I could still pass [the virus] to family members, or friends.”

Photo: Seok L

Steven Lim, a hawker who runs Kim Western stall at #01-16, says in Mandarin “I’m not scared [of getting Covid-19]. My stall is at the [other side] of the hawker centre, so we don’t have any contact [with the affected person].”

The 65-year-old, who is not yet vaccinated, just hopes to receive further rental relief in lieu of “another two weeks of business lost.”

Photo: Kim Western SG /

Hawker Chen Wenquan, who runs a dessert stall at the food centre, told Lianhe Zaobao that they were only informed about the closure at 3pm yesterday (Jul 14) and were caught off guard. He and his wife immediately packed up and went home.

“We were told that someone would come to help us with the COVID testing and that we would also need to be quarantined for two weeks. We are still waiting for instructions, he says.

According to Wenquan, another stallholder had seen the satay stall assistant at work on Sunday. Said assistant later visited a KTV lounge and tested positive for the virus shortly after.

Just last month, Redhill Market and Food Centre was closed for two weeks after an infected person was found to have visited it and the nearby Bukit Merah View Market and Hawker Centre was also shut after several cases were linked to a cluster there. Wenquan is worried that this would be the case for them.

We are mentally prepared to have to quarantine for two weeks, but we will lose a lot of money if we can't do business during this period. After reopening, business will not improve so quickly. I hope that the relevant authorities can adjust the rent, he says.