SINGAPORE — No new cases of coronavirus infection have been detected in the two separate testing operations that were conducted in Redhill and Telok Blangah, the Ministry of Health (MOH) said on Thursday (June 17). 

This was compulsory for people who work at Blocks 79 and 85 Redhill Lane as well as Blocks 79 and 82 Telok Blangah Drive.

In Redhill, MOH said that polymerase chain reaction tests were done on June 15 and 16 after two infected persons had been detected there. 

One was a 27 year-old female Myanmar national who is a foreign domestic worker and the other was a 73 year-old Singaporean woman who works as a stall assistant in Tiong Bahru Yong Tao Hu coffee shop at 56 Eng Hoon Street.

A total of 397 owners, tenants and staff members of shops and commercial units at the two blocks were tested and they all did not have the virus.

Commenting on the “good news”, Mr Melvin Yong, Member of Parliament for Radin Mas, said that the outcome “will certainly bring a big relief” to hawkers, market-goers, and residents living nearby.

Mr Yong stressed, though, that the community cannot afford to let their guard down.

“We are working closely with the Bukit Merah Shop Owners and Hawkers Association to send a reminder to all patrons and stallholders on the do’s and don’ts during this heightened alert period — to maintain strict discipline and continue adhering to the safe management measures.

“We will also be reaching out to the stallholders to encourage and facilitate their vaccination if they have not yet done so.”

In the other testing operation in the Telok Blangah Drive area, it was carried out after two hawkers at Telok Blangah Market and Telok Blangah Food Centre there tested positive for Covid-19.

One was a 42-year-old Singaporean man and the other a 33-year-old Singaporean woman.

All 118 owners, tenants and staff members of shops and commercial units from these two places tested negative for the virus.

In a separate news release on Thursday night, MOH said that it has been investigating cases of infection among people who work in or visited shops at Blocks 78, 79, 80, 84 and 85 Redhill Lane, 86 Redhill Close, 18 Jalan Membina and the Tiong Bahru Yong Tao Hu coffee shop.

“In order to disrupt any wider, undetected community transmission, we will conduct special testing operations for all staff and tenants who have been working at these premises,” it said.

BUKIT MERAH VIEW

Giving an update on the testing operations at Bukit Merah View, MOH said that 21 staff members and tenants — an additional seven more cases on Thursday — of the Bukit Merah View Market and Food Centre were found to be infected by the coronavirus.

Of the 4,892 visitors to the market and neighbouring block, two more people have tested positive after the five that was reported on Wednesday.  

On Thursday, Singapore reported 27 new cases of Covid-19, 17 of which were from the Bukit Merah View market cluster.

The total number of Covid-19 cases in Singapore now stands at 62,366.