86 new COVID-19 infections on August 16, with 6 imported cases

Ministry of Health (MOH) reported 86 new cases of COVID-19 infection in Singapore as of 12pm on August 16, brining the national tally to 55,747.

Majority of the cases are foreign workers living in dormitories.

"The Inter-agency Taskforce has completed the testing of all workers in the dormitories," MOH said in its press statement.

There are currently about 19,900 workers who are still serving out their quarantine period. They will be tested when their quarantine ends, case counts are expected to remain high in the coming days, before tapering down thereafter.

Photo courtesy: Facebook/Singapore Ministry of Health
Photo courtesy: Facebook/Singapore Ministry of Health

There are two cases in the community, both of which are contacts of previously confirmed cases. They had been placed on quarantine earlier, and were tested during quarantine to determine their status.

There are also six imported cases, including a Singaporean who returned to Singapore from Indonesia on August 4.

Another three cases are Dependant’s Pass holders who arrived from India on 31 July and the Philippines on August 4. One other case, who is a Work Pass holder currently employed in Singapore, arrived from the Philippines on August 4.

The remaining case is a Student’s Pass holder who arrived from Russia on August 4.

All of them had been placed on 14-day Stay-Home Notice (SHN) upon arrival in Singapore, and were serving their SHN at dedicated facilities. They had been tested while serving their SHN.