H1N1@3 Jun: 11 cases

Just a few days back, i was just blogging about how the dreaded H1N1 arrived here.

As of 2202h in Singapore, the H1N1 cases rises to 11.

SINGAPORE: The Ministry of Health (MOH) confirmed another three Influenza A (H1N1) cases on Wednesday, bringing the total number of people infected in Singapore to 11.

The 9th patient is a 19-year-old Singaporean student returning from the US for the summer holidays. She arrived on 28 May from New York via Tokyo on All Nippon Airways NH901 at 2340 hours on 28 May.

The MOH says no one else needed to be quarantined as the case developed more than 24 hours after disembarkation, hence she was assessed to be non-infectious during the flight.

The 10th and 11th patients were on the same flight as the 7th confirmed case, a 30-year-old Australian male tourist who was seated at row 54 on Singapore Airlines SQ25 which arrived in Singapore from New York via Frankfurt at 0618 hours on 1 June.

The 10th patient is a 33-year-old Singaporean woman who took a taxi to Tan Tock Seng Hospital after developing symptoms. She was in New York from 23-30 May and was seated at row 19 on SQ25. She was admitted to Communicable Disease Centre 2 (CDC2) at Tan Tock Seng Hospital (TTSH) before midnight on 2 June.

The 11th patient is an 18-year-old American woman. She was seated at row 57 on SQ25. She developed symptoms in the afternoon of 2 June, took a taxi with her relative to seek medical attention at Raffles Hospital's Emergency Department in the evening and was sent to CDC, TTSH via a 993 ambulance. She was admitted to CDC2 in the early hours of 3 June. Contact tracing has been initiated for the 10th and 11th confirmed cases.

Passengers seated within rows 17 to 21 and 57 to 59 on SQ25 on 1 June who have not been contacted by MOH yet should call the MOH hotline at 1800-333 9999. The MOH is expanding the list of "affected areas" to include Melbourne and the State of Victoria in Australia, Kobe and Osaka in Japan, and Chile, besides USA, Canada and Mexico.

Affected areas are those with clear evidence of widespread community transmission. The number of cases in the State of Victoria, particularly in its capital, Melbourne, has been rising rapidly, with the number of cases doubling to reach almost 400 over the last two days.

For Japan, more than 90 per cent of its cases are found in the two cities of Kobe and Osaka. For Chile, the government has announced that H1N1 is entrenched in the community and mitigation measures have replaced containment efforts.

Indications are that there is widespread infection throughout the Chile, although a large majority of cases are found in the capital city, Santiago.

MOH advises the public to avoid non-essential travel to these affected areas.

So far, all the 11 cases in Singapore are imported and have a travel history. There is currently no evidence of community spread.


Seriously, within a span of days, we got so 严重.... Is Singapore ready for H1N1? Well, i'm proud to say that we are. Though it's proven that the virus could spread, since there's 2 cases of person-to-person infection over here out of the 11.

Nevertheless, i feel that we should really be ready for anything. Because, we won't know if anyone around us could well be the next people who might get this.

Is there a case for worry? Right now i'm talking to to Well-travelled Friend who's in her own words, very very worried, about the H1N1 situation. To everyone who's worried, i have this piece of advise for you. There's no cause for worry! Everything is in good hands. Singapore is, I REPEAT, ready for H1N1. Do we expect more cases of H1N1? Well, yea.

Let him who has a ear, let him hear.

As long as u know that you are clear from those who are infected with it, you won't get it. Be clear about this.

Read and watch the news. That helps u in identifying if u happen to be on any flight with someone who's being infected.

For me? Do i fear? Well, not exactly. I dettol-ed myself in the washroom while at Church. I eat Redoxon. Ppl around me who are sick wears a mask. Or rather, the news that H1N1 is that prevalent hasnt' exactly sink in deep in the back of my mind. Whatever it is, just trust the Lord.

We're one strong people who won the fight against SARS ok. We'll win again!