Singapore — The National Environment Agency (NEA) published on Thursday (Oct 28) an update on its Facebook page on the breaches of Covid-19 Safe Management Measures (SMMs) at hawker centres.
The agency said that between Oct 20 and 26, there were 38 people who are either unvaccinated or ONLY partially vaccinated who were found eating at hawker centres.
The vaccination status of these individuals was identified during checks by Safe Distancing Enforcement Officers.
NEA added that the particulars of the 38 people were taken down, but the type of enforcement action taken against them is unknown.
The agency also wrote that enforcement action was taken against 41 individuals from Oct 22 to 24 for the following offences: gathering in groups of more than 2 pax, not maintaining a safe distance of at least 1 metre, and not wearing masks properly.
Since Oct 13, Vaccination-Differentiated Safe Management Measures (VDS) began to be implemented in hawker centres, and NEA said that enforcement actions have been taken against persons who infringed on VDS since Oct 20.
The agency included an appeal to “continue to #SupportOurHawkers safely” through the following measures implemented for public health and safety.
“We all have a part to play in protecting ourselves and people around us. If you’re not vaccinated, please take away your food instead of dining-in,” NEA added.
Under the VDS, people who have not been vaccinated or are only partially vaccinated may only buy food for takeout at hawker centres, except for diners from the age of 12 and below.
These measures have been implemented amid a sharp spike in Covid-19 infections since the middle of last month. Authorities have stressed the need to slow down the growth rate of infections in order to prevent the healthcare system from getting overwhelmed.
On Oct 27, the Ministry of Health (MOH) announced an “unusually high” rise in infections in Singapore—an all-time single-day high of 5,324 new Covid cases.
“The infection numbers are unusually high today, mostly due to many COVID-positive cases detected by the testing laboratories within a few hours in the afternoon. MOH is looking into this unusual surge in cases within a relatively short window, and closely monitoring the trends for the next few days,” wrote the ministry in its Oct 27 update. /TISG
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