Singapore reports only 3 Covid deaths in 6 months

LAHORE: As 219 countries and territories of the world continue to reel under coronavirus, there are a few blessed countries like Singapore that have been having the lowest fatality count globally since September 2020, courtesy the mandatory provision of locally-made face masks mandatory since April last and prompt awareness displayed at both government and public levels to arrest the frightening tide of the pandemic against all odds. Singapore has registered just three deaths during the last six months.

In September 2020, according to the “Reuters” news agency, Singapore had recorded just 27 deaths and more than 57,000 of its citizens had been infected with the deadly Virus then.

Today, when the world has more than 127.75 million cases and a death toll of around 2.795 million, confirmed COVID cases in Singapore have risen from 57,000 to only 60,321 in six months and the death figure has soared from 27 to 30 during the same corresponding period!

The number of recovered patients in Singapore rests at 60,131.

Quite magical and impressive, as numbers suggest!

In September 2020, the “Reuters” had stated: “At 0.05%, Singapore's death rate is well below the global average of around 3%, according to data compiled by “Reuters” from countries that have recorded more than 1,000 cases. A comparison with countries with a similar sized population shows a stark difference - Denmark's death rate is around 3%, while Finland's is around 4%.”

During August and September 2020, nobody has died from the disease in Singapore.

The British news agency had asserted: “About 95% of Singapore’s COVID-19 infections are among migrant workers, mostly in their 20s or 30s, living in cramped dormitories and employed in labor-intensive sectors such as construction and shipbuilding. Singapore has managed to mitigate the spread of the virus via early detection using aggressive contact tracing and testing that won praise from the World Health Organization.”

According to Singapore’s Health Ministry, it had swabbed nearly 900,000 people, more than 15% of its 5.7 million population by September 2020, which was one of the highest per capita rates globally.

The “Reuters” had further reported: “Dormitory residents have been put on a roster-testing regime, authorities have undertaken mass testing among vulnerable communities like care homes, and anyone over 13 with signs of acute respiratory infection is offered a free test. The pre-emptive approach has also applied to treatment. COVID-19 patients above the age of 45 years or with underlying conditions that make them vulnerable are cared for in hospital even if they are otherwise well, doctors said. Singapore sticks rigidly to the WHO’s case definition for classifying COVID-19 deaths. It does not include non-pneumonia fatalities like those caused by blood or heart issues among COVID-19 patients in its official tally.”

By the way, for the sake of our reader’s interest, the most recent country or territory to report its first confirmed case was the Federated States of Micronesia on January 8, 2021, or at a juncture when the US, Germany, South Africa, United Kingdom, Sweden, Switzerland, Indonesia, Israel, Japan, Panama, Slovakia and Lithuania etc were reporting their deadliest days and recording their highest daily fatalities.