Singapore records 6,500 COVID-19 cases... From model country to Southeast Asia's highest case count

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[Asia Economy Reporter Onyu Lim] Singapore, once regarded as a model country for COVID-19 prevention, has seen a rapid surge in confirmed cases, with the cumulative number exceeding 6,500.

According to local media such as The Straits Times on the 19th (local time), the Singapore Ministry of Health announced that 596 new COVID-19 cases were confirmed as of noon. This brings the total number of confirmed cases to 6,588, one of the highest among 11 Southeast Asian countries.

The Philippines reported a cumulative total of 6,259 cases on the 19th, and Indonesia announced 6,248 cumulative cases as of the previous day. No other Southeast Asian countries have surpassed 6,000 cumulative cases.

Singapore health authorities stated that the majority of the new confirmed cases are migrant workers residing in dormitories. In addition, 25 cases are Singaporean citizens or permanent residents. Detailed information related to the confirmed cases is planned to be released later that night.

Singapore recorded a daily high of 942 new confirmed cases the day before, and on the 16th and 17th, 447 and 728 new infections were reported respectively, indicating a steep upward trend.

As a result, the cumulative confirmed cases, which stood at 2,532 on the 12th, have increased 2.6 times in just one week. This is due to a surge in cluster infections in densely populated migrant worker dormitories.

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said on Facebook the day before, "We are trying to break the chain of infections within migrant worker dormitories, but it will take time to see results," adding, "For the time being, we have no choice but to expect more cases of infections among dormitory migrant workers."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.