The COVID-19 situation isn’t getting any better, and even though Singapore has earned many praises worldwide for our efficiency in helping to curb the spread of the infection, we are still struggling to contain it.
PCF Sparkletots Preschool At Fengshan Cluster
There were 49 new COVID-19 cases announced yesterday, and out of those new cases, five were linked to the latest cluster at the PCF Sparkletots preschool at Fengshan.
With a total of 25 cases linked to it, it is now the second-largest cluster in Singapore after the Safra Jurong Cluster.
The Early Childhood Development Agency (ECDA) said in a statement that one of the five new cases is a non-teaching staff member at the PCF Sparkletots centre who had already been issued a quarantine order.
The other cases are family members of Case 521.
In case you didn’t know, Case 521 is a family member of the PCF Sparkletots centre’s principal, and was confirmed to have been infected with the virus on 23 March.
The PCF Fengshan Cluster Has Also Affected Another School in Bedok
One of the cases was a six-year-old child.
However, the child is not a student at the PCF Sparkletots preschool at Fengshan. According to the ECDA, the child is enrolled at Persatuan Pemudi Islam Singapura (PPIS) Child Development Centre at Bedok Reservoir.
They did not specify the gender of the child though.
This essentially means that the PCF Fengshan cluster has affected another school.
The child was last present at the PPIS centre on 11 March, and was still feeling well. It was only after 15 days did the child test positive for the virus, so ECDA announced that the PPIS Centre will not have to be closed for 14 days.
ECDA said, “The PPIS Centre had earlier conducted a cleaning and disinfection of its premises on 25 March. As an added precaution, the centre will close on Saturday, 28 March for a further round of cleaning and disinfection. Barring any new developments, the PPIS Centre will resume operations on Monday, 30 March.”
Precautionary Measures At PPIS Centre
As the COVID-19 situation has worsened over the past few months, the PPIS Centre has implemented its own set of measures to ensure that the spread of infection is curbed.
There was a higher frequency of temperature taking sessions for both the students and the staff, enforcement of maintaining good personal and environmental hygiene, as well as limiting the number of people allowed to visit. They have also since suspended all large group activities.
After the six-year-old tested positive, PPIS Centre has been closely monitoring the health condition of both their staff and children.
Being Socially Responsible
This goes to show how easy it is for a venue to become a cluster, which highlights the importance of everyone being socially responsible.
EDCA has assured everyone that they are communicating with both preschool centres to monitor their situation, and also took this opportunity to remind all preschools in Singapore to be alert when conducting health checks. It is also very necessary to ensure that the highest level of personal and environmental hygiene is observed.
This, of course, does not only extend to the preschools here.
Everyone in Singapore has a duty to observe personal and environmental hygiene. Always wash your hands with soap and water, and avoid touching your face with your hands. Please practise social distancing as well. Many retailers and restaurants have taken the time to put up marking on both their floorings and on their seats, so please adhere to them.
If you’re feeling unwell, please immediately seek medical attention and isolate yourself at home.
Let’s do whatever we can to keep Singapore safe.
