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SINGAPORE – The Ministry of Health (MOH) is investigating 13 cases of Covid-19 infection among people who had delivered stay-at-home (SHN) notices at Mandarin Orchard Singapore, the ministry said in a statement on Saturday (December 19) .
As a precautionary measure, the hotel will stop accepting new guests with immediate effect.
Those currently serving SHN at the hotel will be moved to another dedicated facility. It has not accepted new guests to serve SHN from Sunday (December 13), as its contract to serve as a dedicated facility will expire at the end of the month.
The hotel has also made arrangements to progressively screen existing guests.
The hotel restaurant and event spaces will also be closed.
The 13 cases, which had returned from abroad and were confirmed between November 2 and 19, were noted to have high genetic similarity even though the cases had arrived from different countries, including Bahrain, Canada and Indonesia, said the Ministry of Health.
Findings from the National Public Health Laboratory suggest that these cases were likely infected from a similar source.
Subsequent investigations by the ministry found that these cases had served SHN at Mandarin Orchard Singapore between October 22 and November 11.
The ministry said it cannot exclude that the transmissions may have occurred at Mandarin Orchard Singapore based on preliminary findings.
Sequencing and genome analysis continues for cases after November 11.
It takes approximately four weeks to complete whole genome sequencing and phylogenetic analysis in Covid-19 cases.
Those of SHN are housed in a tower and exclusive floors in the hotel, separated from all other guests, with no interaction between them.
However, as a precautionary measure to ensure the safety of all hotel guests, the hotel will screen all occupants.
The hotel will carry out a thorough cleaning and disinfection, in consultation with the Ministry of Health and the National Environmental Agency.
The Health Ministry said it has started testing around 500 hotel employees for Covid-19 infection.
Guests staying at Mandarin Orchard Singapore between November 11 and December 19 are advised to monitor their health closely for 14 days from their last date of stay, it added.
Has the closure of Mandarin Orchard affected you? Contact us at [email protected] or through our Facebook page.
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