The COVID-19 pandemic has been tough for owners and operators of F&B establishments.
Since dining out involves removing our masks, it’s a slightly risky activity, which is why it’s the first thing to be banned or restricted whenever there’s a new outbreak.
Even it’s permitted, all it takes is one infection among workers at your establishment for the whole shop to be closed down.
And that’s exactly what happened to a popular coffee shop in Jurong West.
Popular Jurong West Coffeeshop Closes After Worker Tested Positive for COVID-19
Xin Fa Li Coffeeshop, a coffee shop at 496 Jurong West St 41, has closed after a worker there tested positive for COVID-19.
The announcement was made by Jurong GRC MP Xie Yao Quan in a Facebook post today morning (19 July).
More popularly known as Red Chairs, the coffee shop is located near Jurong Central Plaza, a wet market that has been a source of COVID-19 infections.
After the worker’s infection was detected, Red Chairs was closed for deep cleaning and to break any potential chain of transmission.
All stallholders and workers at the coffee shop are isolating at home while awaiting further arrangements, Mr Xie said.
“This is disheartening news. Our immediate focus is to support affected stallholders, workers and residents where we can. But this is also a further reminder, if any is needed, that we need all of us to play our part, and be responsible in our own actions, in order to minimise the chances of a repeat,” he wrote.
Mr Xie reminded patrons to look out for SMS alerts from the Ministry of Health (MOH), regarding any potential interactions with confirmed cases.
Those who have not received any such alerts but are concerned can do an ART test, and seek medical attention should they develop symptoms.
“I would also like to encourage all eligible residents, especially seniors, who have yet to sign up for vaccination to please consider doing so,” he wrote.
“This is to protect yourself and your loved ones, and help put all of us in an ever stronger position of herd resilience, so that eventually, we can look to put disruptions like this behind us.”
“If you have any query at all, please feel free to reach out to me and my team,” he added.
42 More Cases Linked to Jurong Fishery Port Cluster
Yesterday, 42 more community cases were linked to the Jurong Fishery Port cluster. The new cluster now has 63 cases.
Among these were fishmongers working at:
- Haig Road Market and Cooked Food Centre
- Jurong Central Plaza
- Shunfu Mart
“We are closely monitoring the situation and taking action to quickly contain and manage the cases, including contact tracing, quarantine and aggressive testing,” MOH said.
The ministry confirmed that dining in at eateries will resume from 21 Jun in groups of up to two people, not five as previously planned.
Will this long nightmare ever end?
Featured Image: Facebook (Xie Yao Quan 谢曜全)
