Coronavirus: record deaths, cases test Singapore’s reopening plans; illegal home parties behind surge in Melbourne cases
- Singapore reported a record 2,478 new cases on Thursday, with the recent rise prompting officials to pause further reopening
- Nearly a third of 1,438 fresh infections in Victoria blamed on home parties last weekend to watch the Australian Rules Football Grand Final on TV
On Thursday, its health ministry reported two new deaths, and 2,478 new Covid-19 cases, the highest since the beginning of the pandemic. This is the third straight day cases have topped 2,200.
The rise in cases comes even as the government re-implemented some domestic curbs to combat infection rates that are hitting their highest levels since the pandemic began.
While officials said they are committed to reopening the island nation where four in every five residents are fully vaccinated, the rise in the death toll doesn’t bode well. Public perceptions of the virus situation are already strained in the city state, where strict social measures to combat the pathogen have been in place for well over a year.
Of those whose deaths were reported on Wednesday, six were unvaccinated, according to the Ministry of Health. All were seniors aged 72 to 90. The deaths bring the total loss of life from the virus in Singapore to 93.
Still, evidence remains that high vaccination rates are warding off many serious infections. More than 98 per cent of the 26,088 people diagnosed with Covid-19 in the past 28 days had mild or no symptoms.