Outward Bound Singapore Camps On Pulau Ubin To Become Quarantine Facility
As of Wednesday (29 Jan), Singapore has 72 pending cases of the Wuhan coronavirus while 7 cases have been confirmed.
MOH has also identified 160 confirmed close contacts of said confirmed cases, according to Channel NewsAsia (CNA).
There has been no local transmission yet since all patients are from the Hubei province in China. However, officials are implementing precautionary measures to prevent a potential outbreak.
The government plans to use Outward Bound Singapore Camps (OBS) On Pulau Ubin as quarantine facilities.
Outward Bound camps are now government quarantine facility
CNA reports that Outward Bound Singapore (OBS) camps on Pulau Ubin will become quarantine facilities to prevent the spread of the Wuhan virus.
A spokesperson from the Ministry of National Development (MND) assured that after patients receive a quarantine they will then be isolated in “appropriate locations”.
On Saturday (25 Jan), Singapore chalets were also turned into quarantine centers.
The latest list of quarantine facilities include:
- OBS camps in Pulau Ubin
- Heritage Chalet
- SAF Changi Chalet
- HomeTeamNS Sembawang Chalets
- University Hostels
The MND spokesperson said,
This eliminates the possibility of the spread of virus through person-to-person contact.
These measures are a part of the government’s response to deal with the virus.
University hostels as quarantine facilities
On Monday (27 Jan), 3 universities turned their hostels into quarantine facilities too.
These universities include:
- National University of Singapore (NUS)
- Singapore Management University (SMU)
- Nanyang Technological University (NTU)
Hence, affected students were transferred to other hostels on the campus.
While Education Minister Ong Ye Kung apologised for the inconvenience to students, he claims that this is a part of the national response to the dire situation.
He told CNA,
It is better now before it happens that we get the facilities ready.
No community spread yet
Locals can rest easy because the government has implemented measures to prevent the spread of the virus. Fortunately, there have been no cases of local transmission and we hope it stays this way.
The quarantine facilities may inconvenience some locals, but it’s a small price to pay to guarantee everyone’s safety.
While there’s no case of local transmission, Singaporeans should be alert to avoid infection.
Featured image from Facebook.
