Changi Airport worker tests preliminarily positive for Omicron; 24 confirmed cases to date
One more local Covid-19 case has tested preliminarily positive for the Omicron variant, said the Ministry of Health (MOH) on Thursday (Dec 16).
The man is a loading assistant at Changi Airport Terminal 3. He had no contact with flight passengers, said MOH.
There are 24 confirmed Omicron cases detected in Singapore to date, of which 21 are imported cases and three are local cases, added the ministry.
"Given its high transmissibility and spread to many parts of the world, we should expect to find more Omicron cases at our borders and also within our community," said MOH.
The 42-year-old man, who is fully vaccinated, developed a fever on Dec 8 and sought medical treatment at a general practitioner clinic where he was tested for Covid-19.
His test result came back positive the next day, and he was placed on home recovery.
He was subsequently identified as a close contact of a 54-year-old loading cabin assistant at Changi Airport Terminal 3 - one of three cases reported on Wednesday who had tested preliminarily positive for the Omicron variant.
The 42-year-old man's sample was tested for the Omicron variant on Thursday and his test result came back preliminarily positive, said MOH.
"The National Public Health Laboratory is conducting whole genome sequencing to confirm the variant and contact tracing is ongoing," added the ministry.
He has mild symptoms and is recovering in an isolation ward at the National Centre for Infectious Diseases.
There were 355 new Covid-19 infections and one death reported on Thursday.
Deaths have been recorded daily since Sept 20, with Thursday's death being the lowest reported in a day.
The latest figures take Singapore's Covid-19 death toll to 808, and the total number of cases to 274,972.
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