SIA Cabin Crew With Covid-19 Was With 4 Other Cases On Same Flight
While air travel is seeing a slight resumption and vaccines are being rolled out, we are still not safe from Covid-19 infection.
A Singapore Airlines cabin crew member tested positive for the B117 strain of Covid-19 after she returned from a flight the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
She was on a flight with 4 other cases and has been classified as an imported case.
SIA cabin crew lost sense of smell
In a press release on 9 Feb, the Ministry of Health (MOH) said a 41-year-old female Singaporean returned from a turnaround flight to the United Arab Emirates on 1 Feb.
She did not leave the aircraft when it touched down overseas.
The lady developed a loss of her sense of smell on 4 Feb, which is a symptom of Covid-19 infection.
Unfortunately, she did not seek medical attention but tested positive for Covid-19 on 7 Feb, during the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore’s mandatory testing measures.
Along with 4 passengers on the same flight, the cabin crew member also preliminarily tested positive for the B117 strain of the virus.
Cabin crew received 1st dose of vaccine
MOH said the woman also received the 1st dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine on 2 Feb.
However, they clarified that the vaccine does not contain live virus and therefore her infection couldn’t have been attributed to it.
MOH said the cabin crew member could have been infected onboard her latest flight since other infections were on board as well. They added that a person would take a few weeks to build up immunity after vaccination.
As of now, she has been classified as an imported case while her family and co-workers have been placed on quarantine and will undergo tests.
Seek medical attention if you have symptoms
Thankfully, the SIA cabin crew member’s Covid-19 infection was found after mandatory testing.
However, with Chinese New Year around the corner, community clusters remain a real possibility.
Do seek medical attention if you have symptoms of Covid-19 infection so that all of us can have a safe time with family and friends.
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Featured image adapted from Singapore Airlines.
