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<!-- headline one : start --><TR>More cases of H1N1 being spread locally
</TR><!-- headline one : end --><TR>Seven of 16 new cases caught the flu here; third cluster identified </TR><!-- Author --><TR><TD class="padlrt8 georgia11 darkgrey bold" colSpan=2>By April Chong
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<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->MORE evidence has emerged that the Influenza A (H1N1) flu virus is now being spread in the local community among Singaporeans who have not travelled overseas.
Seven of yesterday's 16 new cases caught the virus here, some at a church in Loyang and one at a popular city night spot. The total number of people who apparently caught the virus in Singapore has hit 21 in just four days.
They now account for one in seven of the current total of 142 cases, according to figures released by the Health Ministry (MOH) yesterday.
The accelerating spread of the virus in the local community is something health officials here had warned would happen eventually. Health Minister Khaw Boon Wan said two weeks ago that it was 'only a matter of time' before there was community spread of the virus here.
And when it does come to that, the country will switch to the 'mitigation' phase, where the focus will be on caring for the sick, he said.
Last Thursday marked the start of the rising number of local cases. A Malaysian PR fell ill even though he had not travelled overseas to an area with known community spread.
MOH said then that 'if more such unlinked cases emerge over the next few days, this would signal the beginning of community spread in Singapore'.
There are now three clusters in Singapore where the H1N1 virus is known to have been transmitted locally. The first is the Riverlife Church in Loyang, where seven infections have been traced to. This includes two new cases reported yesterday - a 20-year-old female student and a 12-year-old boy who studies in Australia.
A second cluster is the National University of Singapore. Three people were previously reported to have caught the virus there and another one is now believed to be linked to them.
Yesterday, MOH highlighted a new third cluster - the newly-opened Butter Factory club in One Fullerton. It said another 19-year-old female student who was at the night spot last Wednesday has also fallen ill. She joins three others who had also been in the popular club that same night and caught the virus earlier.
MOH is now advising anyone who visited Butter Factory last Wednesday night to monitor their health closely and seek medical help if they are unwell.
The other four locally transmitted cases reported yesterday had no recent travel history and are not linked to any of the three clusters. One is a 21-year-old police national serviceman based at a police station in Clementi.
MOH also reported nine new imported cases yesterday who had travelled to Australia, the Philippines, Indonesia and Britain. Contact tracing is ongoing for these.
As of last night, 47 patients have been discharged with 95 still warded.
Infection numbers across the Asia Pacific continued to rise yesterday, with New Zealand officials warning that the country expects a big increase in H1N1 cases in the coming months. [email protected]
Home > Prime News > Story
</TR>
<!-- headline one : start --><TR>More cases of H1N1 being spread locally
</TR><!-- headline one : end --><TR>Seven of 16 new cases caught the flu here; third cluster identified </TR><!-- Author --><TR><TD class="padlrt8 georgia11 darkgrey bold" colSpan=2>By April Chong
</TD></TR><!-- show image if available --></TBODY></TABLE>
<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->MORE evidence has emerged that the Influenza A (H1N1) flu virus is now being spread in the local community among Singaporeans who have not travelled overseas.
Seven of yesterday's 16 new cases caught the virus here, some at a church in Loyang and one at a popular city night spot. The total number of people who apparently caught the virus in Singapore has hit 21 in just four days.
They now account for one in seven of the current total of 142 cases, according to figures released by the Health Ministry (MOH) yesterday.
The accelerating spread of the virus in the local community is something health officials here had warned would happen eventually. Health Minister Khaw Boon Wan said two weeks ago that it was 'only a matter of time' before there was community spread of the virus here.
And when it does come to that, the country will switch to the 'mitigation' phase, where the focus will be on caring for the sick, he said.
Last Thursday marked the start of the rising number of local cases. A Malaysian PR fell ill even though he had not travelled overseas to an area with known community spread.
MOH said then that 'if more such unlinked cases emerge over the next few days, this would signal the beginning of community spread in Singapore'.
There are now three clusters in Singapore where the H1N1 virus is known to have been transmitted locally. The first is the Riverlife Church in Loyang, where seven infections have been traced to. This includes two new cases reported yesterday - a 20-year-old female student and a 12-year-old boy who studies in Australia.
A second cluster is the National University of Singapore. Three people were previously reported to have caught the virus there and another one is now believed to be linked to them.
Yesterday, MOH highlighted a new third cluster - the newly-opened Butter Factory club in One Fullerton. It said another 19-year-old female student who was at the night spot last Wednesday has also fallen ill. She joins three others who had also been in the popular club that same night and caught the virus earlier.
MOH is now advising anyone who visited Butter Factory last Wednesday night to monitor their health closely and seek medical help if they are unwell.
The other four locally transmitted cases reported yesterday had no recent travel history and are not linked to any of the three clusters. One is a 21-year-old police national serviceman based at a police station in Clementi.
MOH also reported nine new imported cases yesterday who had travelled to Australia, the Philippines, Indonesia and Britain. Contact tracing is ongoing for these.
As of last night, 47 patients have been discharged with 95 still warded.
Infection numbers across the Asia Pacific continued to rise yesterday, with New Zealand officials warning that the country expects a big increase in H1N1 cases in the coming months. [email protected]
