Despite the looming threat of the Omicron variant, a large crowd gathered at Clarke Quay for a New Year’s Eve celebration.
The authorities have since classified the gathering as a “potential superspreading event“.
Referencing such events, multi-ministry task force (MTF) co-chair Lawrence Wong said that Singapore may have to tighten measures if our healthcare system becomes overwhelmed and if Covid-19 transmission are amplified by individuals taking “unnecessary risks”.
He urged Singaporeans to continue adhering to Covid-19 rules which will give us a better chance of tiding through the imminent wave without having to tighten further.
During an MTF press conference on Wednesday (5 Jan), Minister Wong said that if individuals take “unnecessary risks” during the upcoming wave, they may amplify the risk of transmission.
This will result in a larger wave of infection and place greater pressure on our healthcare system.
Should we land ourselves in such a situation, the authorities may have no choice but to tighten Covid-19 measures.
Conversely, should residents comply with the SMMs, Singapore would be in a better position to get through the imminent wave.
Commenting on the large NYE gathering at Clarke Quay, Mr Wong described the celebration as being “not acceptable“.
While the crowd’s enthusiasm to usher in the new year is understandable, their actions were not, especially in the midst of a pandemic.
The authorities are currently investigating and combing through CCTV footage to identify the individuals in the crowd.
They will then call these people up for interviews and possibly enforcement actions if they prove to be guilty of breaching Covid-19 measures.
Investigations thus far found that the celebration was unplanned and happened as individuals were “caught up in the moment”.
Video footage showed more than 100 people gathering at the location, with many of them breaching mask-wearing and safe distancing rules.
As with previous Covid-19 waves, everyone has a part to play in managing the upcoming surge in Omicron cases.
While difficult, we hope everyone will continue adhering to the rules so we won’t have to adapt to tighter measures again.
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Featured image by MS News.
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